The Hindu : Congress seat-sharing talks with TRS deadlocked

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Mar 22, 2004

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Congress seat-sharing talks with TRS deadlocked

By K.V. Prasad

NEW DELHI, MARCH 21. The seat-sharing talks the Congress initiated with the Telengana Rashtra Samithi were almost called off today even as the negotiations with the Communist Party of India and the CPI(M) gained a modest forward movement.

The TRS chief, K. Chandrashekar Rao, and the senior leader, A. Narendra, who had threatened to pull out from the talks in case the issue was not clinched by this evening, relented after intervention by senior Congress leaders. After the deadline of Sunday evening passed, Mr. Rao called a press conference hinting that the party would make a unilateral move. But by evening, Dasari Narayana Rao, who is managing the party's campaign committee, called on TRS leaders after which they decided to wait till Monday.A dispute over the constituencies that were being claimed by the TRS was the reason behind the stalemate. According to sources, there were differences on four to five Assembly seats. It is understood that the Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee chief, D. Srinivas, had a meeting this morning with Mr. Rao to sort out the issue. There were reports that some of the seats the TRS wanted, had been demanded by the two Left parties.

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