The Hindu : Front Page : `Congress for setting up second SRC'

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Friday, Jan 05, 2007
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`Congress for setting up second SRC'

Special Correspondent

No deviation from party stand, says Digvijay; brainstorming session opens

IT'S SALUTE TIME: Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy takes the salute along with APCC president K. Keshava Rao and AICC general secretary in charge of State Digvijay Singh at the brainstorming session in Hyderabad on Thursday. - PHOTO : P.V. SIV AKUMAR

HYDERABAD: All-India Congress Committee general secretary Digvijay Singh has made it clear that the Congress is committed to constituting a second States Reorganisation Commission (SRC) to deal with the demand of separate statehood for Telangana.

The Congress has not deviated from its stand on the second SRC and it has constituted a committee headed by Pranab Mukherjee to evolve a consensus following the insistence of TRS president K. Chandrasekhar Rao, Mr. Digvijay Singh said on Thursday.

Addressing the two-day brainstorming session of the Pradesh Congress Committee at heritage resort of Taramati Baradari here, he said consensus could not be evolved because of divergent views of political parties. "Where is consensus? Three of the five alliance partners -- CPI, CPI (M) and MIM - have said no to separate Telangana while the Congress favoured a second SRC," he said.

Mr. Singh asked partymen not to get disappointed over the debacle in the Karimnagar Lok Sabha byelection. It was only an example to show that rationale would take a backseat whenever emotional issues came forward.

The AICC leader said the meeting, which is being attended by Ministers, MPs, MLAs and senior party leaders, had been organised to review the performance of the Government in the last two and a half years and make mid-course corrections, if necessary. APCC president K. Keshav Rao presided over the meeting.

He explained that it would take time for the Government to implement all its election promises. Pointing out than an effective administration was the key to success, he said: "We have to make the same set of officials who served Governments earlier work. Officials will quickly switch loyalties once they sense change. It is up to us to make them work efficiently." In this context he cited his 10-year-long experience as Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh.

Leaders cautioned

Stating that leaders could express their dissent in party fora, he cautioned them against making their views public thereby giving scope for media to set the party's agenda. Party leaders, MLAs and MPs were free to argue their point, but the will of the majority would prevail. "Moreover, the media has its own role to play," he added.

Emphasising the need for strategies to meet the challenge of incumbency in 2009, he suggested that Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy make an assessment as to how this factor would work against MLAs and MPs and discuss with them the measures to rectify the situation. "The assessment may not be revealed to others and the Chief Minister can talk to MLAs and MPs personally," he said.

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