NEW DELHI: Union Minister and Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) chief K. Chandrasekhara Rao on Friday expressed confidence that their demand for statehood for Telangana was on course and that the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) at the Centre had made an explicit commitment in its Common Minimum Programme (CMP).

Mr. Rao, who met UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi on the issue on Friday, told correspondents that the Pranab Mukherjee Committee report on the subject was expected to be submitted by mid-May and that the decks for introduction of a Bill would be cleared in due course.

`Bill in next session'

He expressed the hope that the UPA would be in a position to introduce a Bill in the next session of Parliament since there was a near consensus among political parties on the issue of granting statehood to Telangana.

Mr. Rao said that the principal Opposition party, the Bharatiya Janata Party, had already extended support for the proposed move and said the official process for the creation of a separate State was expected to begin next month.

Refers to CMP

The TRS has been mounting pressure on the Congress-led UPA Government for granting statehood to Telangana and the recent overtures from the BJP have had an impact. However, asked whether the BJP pressure was at work, Mr. Rao said the UPA's stand on Telangana was an integral part of the CMP.

Meanwhile, sources in the Congress said that the party president heard the views of the TRS chief in the backdrop of the latest political developments, including the support the party had garnered from the BJP.

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