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Seven cong MPs threaten to quit over Telangana
The Telangana stir intensified today as angry protestors clashed with the police at the Indira Park in Hyderabad, a day after central government indefinitely postponed a decision on the separate state.
A day after the Centre deferred a decision on the Telangana issue once again, seven Congress MPs from the region threatened to resign both from the party and Parliament.
The decision was taken at a meeting in Hyderabad on Monday, the day the month-long deadline set by home minister Sushil Kumar Shinde to resolve the imbroglio expired.
“The move is to protect Congress interests in the region. It is to retain our credibility,” said Peddapalle MP G Vivekanand.
The MPs have left a window open for the party leadership. Bhongir MP K Rajgopal Reddy said they would meet on Tuesday to take stock of the situation.
Reddy added that they would resign by Tuesday evening if there was no forward movement from the Centre.
Several MLAs and some ministers from the region too have threatened to resign in protest. The possibility of some of them joining the Telangana Rashtra Samithi appears high.
On its part, the Congress has sought more time for further consultations on the issue despite a threat from seven Telangana MPs to disrupt the budget session if the UPA government did not announce the formation of Telangana by then.
But the party leadership apprehends a bigger trouble in Parliament from its 19 Lok Sabha MPs belonging to Andhra and Rayalaseema regions in case the UPA government agrees to divide the state. These MPs had dropped enough hints that in such a scenario they would join the YSR Congress of Jaganmohan Reddy.
The primary concern of the party is to ensure smooth functioning of Parliament during the budget session, which is going to be the UPA government’s last full such sitting before the 2014 Lok Sabha elections.
