Telangana protagonists term Centre's ToR as 'betrayal'

The terms of reference (ToR) set for the Srikrishna Committee to examine the situation in Andhra Pradesh evoked mixed reactions with the Telangana protagonists strongly denouncing them as "betrayal" of the people of the region.

Telangana Rashtra Samiti president K Chandrasekhar Rao termed the ToR as "baseless, meaningless and mindless" while
Andhra Pradesh Congress chief D Srinivas welcomed them.

"It is a total betrayal of the people of Telangana. The ToR are totally immoral," Rao lashed out. 

Srinivas hoped the committee would do justice to the state and urged all political parties to cooperate with it. 

Reacting to the TRS' demand for resignation of legislators, Srinivas said resignations would not solve any problem.

Telugu Desam Party leaders hailing from Telangana region said the ToR was a betrayal of the people of the region and suggested that the Centre was bent on pushing the separate statehood demand into the cold storage.

TDP politburo member Nagam Janardhana Reddy asserted that Telangana state could be achieved only by creating a constitutional crisis in the state.

The Praja Rajyam Party welcomed the ToR and appealed to all political parties to observe restraint till the committee completed the consultation process. 

"It's a right step by the Centre in accordance with its commitment given at the all-party meeting on January 5," PRP Political Affairs Committee member K Kalavenkata Rao said.

CPI state secretary K Narayana and BJP state president Bandaru Dattatreya also said the TOR was "deceiving". 

"The statehood process will get delayed because of the Committee. Since it's a political problem, the Centre should
find a political solution," Narayana said in Vijayawada.

"The TOR clearly indicate that the Committee was formed only to bury the Telangana statehood demand. The UPA government should step down as it failed to stick to its December 9 statement on the statehood issue," BJP leader and former Union minister Vidyasagar Rao said.

The Telangana Political Joint Action Committee too strongly denounced the terms of reference set for Srikrishna Committee.

JAC convenor Kodandaram said the ToR have left them "totally disappointed".

While the two TRS MPs, including Chandrasekhar Rao, 10 MLAs and one MLC decided to resign from their posts in protest against the ToR, the TDP legislators from Telangana said they would act in accordance with the decision of the JAC. 

Kodandaram announced that the JAC would meet here tomorrow to chalk out a future course of action and also take a decision on the resignations. 

"All the parties are in the JAC and none has withdrawn. We are all meeting here tomorrow to decide on the future course of action," Kodandaram said after an interaction with TDP MLAs.

He later held talks with some Congress MLAs from the region as well.

The 10 TRS MLAs will meet Assembly Speaker N Kiran Kumar Reddy here tomorrow and submit their resignations individually "in the prescribed format".

Chandrasekhar Rao and his fellow MP Vijayasanthi are expected to meet Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar in New Delhi on
February 16 and press for acceptance of their resignations
which they had submitted earlier.

On the other hand, political leaders hailing from Andhra-Rayalaseema regions too have not welcomed the Srikrishna Committee ToR in toto.

"The ToR clearly indicated that the Centre was bent on dividing Andhra Pradesh. Union Home Minister P Chidambaram's conspiracy in this regard is clearly visible in the TOR," TDP
MP M V Mysura Reddy said.

TDP politburo member K Yerrannaidu has felt the Centre should have also included the demands for other smaller states in the country in the Sri Krishna Committee's ToR. 

"Andhra Pradesh should not become a laboratory for experiments related to creation of smaller states," the former Union minister said.

State home minister P Sabita Indra Reddy, who was on an official tour of Tirupati, welcomed the Committee ToR and hoped they would be in favour of a separate Telangana state. 

The Lok Satta Party too welcomed the ToR and appealed to political parties to take an appropriate stand in the interests of the people.

Since the Committee was only recommendatory in nature, there was no need for any apprehensions, Lok Satta Party spokesman K Srinivasa Rao felt.