The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh News : Congress threatens to review ties with TRS

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Sunday, Sep 12, 2004

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Congress threatens to review ties with TRS

By Ravi Reddy

HYDERABAD, SEPT. 11. The Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee president, D. Srinivas, has said that the Congress will be forced to review its ties with the Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) if irresponsible statements are continued to be made by its president and Union Minister, K. Chandrasekhara Rao.

Visibly angry with the outbursts of the TRS chief at a party meeting here yesterday, the PCC chief, speaking to The Hindu from Nizamabad on Saturday night, threatened to review the alliance if Mr. Chandrasekhara Rao continued with his outbursts without any provocation.

Digvijay informed

"There is no question of tolerating such behaviour from a responsible leader," Mr. Srinivas said, adding that the issue had been brought to the notice of the AICC in charge of Andhra Pradesh affairs, Digvijay Singh.

The Congress was not ready to keep quiet if adverse remarks were made against the AICC president, Sonia Gandhi, and the Chief Minister, Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy. He said Mr. Chandrasekhara Rao had lost his self-confidence and he had no business to utter such harsh words against Ms. Gandhi. He wondered why KCR made such remarks when he had praised the Congress chief a few days ago.

`Unbecoming'

"It is unbecoming of a responsible UPA partner to utter such words as his party MLAs are holding ministerial berths in the Congress Government in Andhra Pradesh." He found fault with Mr. Chandrasekhara Rao for repeatedly claiming that Ms. Gandhi had given an assurance on Telangana. "It is a breach of trust by the TRS president who keeps on harping that the AICC chief has given an assurance on Telangana."

He said Telangana was certainly an issue and the TRS alone cannot claim right over it. The Congress was seized of the matter.

Meanwhile, APCC leaders faxed a complaint to Ms. Gandhi complaining against the TRS chief. They said his statement was deplorable and derogatory, and wondered why he made it when the Congress had given pride of place to the pro-Telangana party at the Centre and the State.

`No moral right'

The APCC general secretaries — K.R. Amos, S. Indrasena Reddy, K. Yadav Reddy — and others said the statement was inflammatory and punishable under law as Mr. Chandrasekhara Rao was trying to instigate the people of the State.

They said the TRS Ministers had lost all moral right to continue in the Union Cabinet after having threatened to drag the Congress president "to the streets on the issue of Telangana".

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