The Hindu : Front Page : Devender Goud sticks to his guns

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Thursday, Jun 12, 2008
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Devender Goud sticks to his guns

Special Correspondent

His overt pro-Telangana stand gets other TDP leaders’ goat in Kakinada

HYDERABAD: The trouble in Telugu Desam triggered by Telangana issue seems to be far from over with senior leader T. Devender Goud taking a strident posture in his hour-long meeting with party president N. Chandrababu Naidu on the sidelines of the polit bureau meeting at Thimmapuram near Kakinada on Wednesday.

Party sources said Mr. Goud refused to tone down his pro-Telangana stand before Mr. Naidu arguing that it was a question of survival for the party in the region. If the party failed to finalise its stand, it could lose the battle in the 2009 Assembly elections, which meant 119 seats at stake after delimitation.

He reportedly was unrelenting even when Mr. Naidu tried to convince him that the party could lose out in the other regions having a majority of the seats. Mr. Goud argued that it would be better for the party to safeguard its strong position in Telangana by changing its stand and then take on megastar Chiranjeevi’s proposed party in Andhra where the latter is expected to do well.

Sources said with Mr. Goud refusing to budge, Mr. Naidu convened another meeting summoning other senior leaders, K. Yerran Naidu and Y. Ramakrishnudu. But this meeting reportedly turned out to be hotter with arguments and counter arguments over the party stand on Telangana. Mr. Goud is stated to have complained that a senior leader was behind the broadside launched against him by Secunderabad MLA T. Srinivas Yadav.

Wrong signals

Mr. Naidu appeared to have counselled Mr. Goud not to take extreme positions or air his views in public, but discuss all issues with him or in the party fora. He would also make a similar appeal to all other leaders as there was the danger of such conflicting views sending wrong signals to the cadre and the people.

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