The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh / Hyderabad News : Congress leaders firm on Bhongir meeting

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Wednesday, Mar 19, 2008
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Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh - Hyderabad

Congress leaders firm on Bhongir meeting

Special Correspondent

HYDERABAD: Adopting a confrontationist attitude, senior Congress leaders from Telangana region have decided to go ahead with their proposed public meeting in Bhongir on March 24, virtually ignoring the plea made by AICC general secretary M. Veerappa Moily to cancel it.

Differing with the high command’s contention that the meeting was not in the interest of the party, senior Congress leaders, who met at the residence of the Congress Working Committee member G. Venkataswamy, said the appeal came ‘too late’.

For the second successive day, Mr. Moily tried to convince the seniors to see reason and cancel the meeting. He had a brief telephonic conversation with Mr. Venkataswamy and others, who bluntly told him that if they heeded to his advice and called off the meeting, it would cause irreparable damage to the cause of separate State.

The meeting was attended by party seniors – V. Purushottam Reddy, K.R.Amos, Palvai Goverdhan Reddy, B. Kamalakar Rao, K.Yadava Reddy and others. APSRTC chairman M.Satyanarayana Rao was conspicuous by his absence.

Speaking to reporters later, Mr. Venkataswamy wondered whether the request by Mr. Moily was to project the seniors in a ‘poor light’. “Mr Moily has issued a hukumnama (Diktat) to us to cancel the meeting. But, we are equally determined to go ahead with it. The idea is to show to the high command the sentiments prevailing in the region about the separate State,” he remarked.

Ridiculing the charge that the meeting did not have the high command’s clearance, Mr. Venkataswamy said: “When we are displaying the posters of the party president Sonia Gandhi, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and AICC general secretary Rahul Gandhi, how can anybody say it is not a party meeting. As the CWC member, I am attending it,” he wondered.

Meanwhile, Mr. Moily also reacted sharply in New Delhi stating that the seniors’ conduct was no different from the TRS leaders. “Their decision is neither in the interest of the party nor creation of Telangana State,” he said.

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