Hyderabad: Intensifying their agitation,
several Congress MPs and MLAs, who quit their posts recently,
on Wednesday began a 48-hour hunger strike to highlight their demand
for a separate Telangana state.
The fast began at the Indira Park here, with seven
MPs, three ministers, 14 MLAs and two MLCs taking part in it.
Though, there has been no concrete response from the
Centre, following their en masse resignations, the hunger
strike is aimed at highlighting their demand, Telangana
Congress leaders said.
Asked about the comments by Union Minister and
in-charge of party affairs in Andhra Pradesh, Ghulam Nabi
Azad, that wider consensus and a resolution in the assembly is
necessary for the formation of a separate state, Congress MP
from Karimnagar Ponnam Prabhakar said that a consensus would
never be possible, as legislators from non-Telangana region
are more in numbers.
"If he (Azad) has made such comments, it is
regrettable. Leadeship needs to think about such comments.
Consensus would not be possible, because they are more in
numbers. In fact, all parties had agreed on the formation of
Telangana earlier. We will use these comments to only
strengthen our resolve and to achieve our goal," he said.
Azad had said in Beijing yesterday that a decision on
the formation of Telangana state cannot move ahead an "inch"
without the State Assembly passing a unanimous resolution.
"If we have to do this we have to pass a unanimous
resolution. Unless it is passed, we cannot move one inch,"
Azad had said.
PTI
