The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh News : TRS team's visit irks Chief Minister

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Friday, Jan 21, 2005

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

TRS team's visit irks Chief Minister

By Our Staff Reporter

The TRS Ministers -- (from left) A. Chandrasekhar, G. Vijayarama Rao and Nayani Narasimha Reddy -- coming out of the Chief Minister's office in Hyderabad on Thursday. Photo: Satish H.

HYDERABAD, JAN. 20. The Chief Minister, Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy, was reportedly unhappy over four Ministers of Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) leading a delegation to him on Thursday to make a representation against the State Government on the naxal issue.

Sources said that as soon as the Civil Supplies Minister, G. Vijayarama Rao, broached the subject on behalf of the TRS, Dr. Reddy shot back saying he had always considered Congress and TRS members in his Cabinet as belonging to one flock. It was the collective responsibility of the Cabinet to deal with the situation.

In his half-an-hour long interaction, Dr. Reddy was said to have asked the TRS men to appreciate his own limitations in continuing the talks and also upholding the rule of law. The Centre was also watching the deteriorating law and order situation.

Charge against naxals

Dr. Reddy was said to have pointed out that the CPI (Maoist) was taking advantage of the peace process to consolidate itself. The advent of Nepal-Dandakaranya corridor was helpful to them for smuggling of weapons. The Maoists were extorting money on a large-scale for purchase of weapons from ISI activists also, he reportedly said and cited a recent instance when they collected Rs. 30 lakhs in Kamareddy.

He gave a detailed account of how the Congress was in favour of peace talks with naxalites even when it was in Opposition. It had mounted pressure on the TDP Government for negotiations with naxalites. After returning to power, the Congress Government stuck to the stand and invited them for talks. But, the talks received a setback after Maoists triggered a landmine at G.K. Veedhi in Visakhapatnam injuring four police constables.

The delegation returned disappointed as it did not get any assurance from Dr. Reddy to their demand for judicial inquiry into the encounter killings, particularly the one in which a TRS district vice-president, N. Vasanth Kumar, died in Warangal.

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