Pro-unified AP ministers to take their battle to Delhi

Hyderabad: Andhra Pradesh ministers from the Andhra-Rayalaseema regions will camp in New Delhi from Monday to prevail upon the Congress high command as well as the Centre not to divide the state.

"We want Andhra Pradesh to remain united. We will present our case strongly to the party high command and the Centre in a democratic manner," School Education Minister S Sailajanath told reporters after a meeting of ministers here Saturday afternoon. Ministers E Pratap Reddy, Sailajanath, Kondru Murali, Ganta Srinivasa Rao and others attended the meeting. "Our stand is not to accept bifurcation of the state. We will meet Union Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde and other leaders of the Congress high command and present our demand to them," Sailajanath said. Former minister J C Diwakar Reddy debunked claims that the Centre was about to announce a favourable decision on Telangana. "There are no indications whatsoever in this regard. Anyway, we are going to New Delhi on Monday to press the case for a unified state," Diwakar Reddy told newsmen separately. He, however, added that they would abide by the Congress high command`s decision on the statehood issue. Meanwhile, the Communist Party of India organised a demonstration near Indira Park here today to maintain pressure on the Centre for carving out Telangana state. Addressing the gathering, CPI national general secretary Suravaram Sudhakar Reddy remarked that efforts to stall formation of Telangana state would continue till the last minute. "We have to unitedly thwart such efforts," he said. Talking to reporters at the state Congress headquarters, Karimnagar MP Ponnam Prabhakar urged Andhra-Rayalaseema leaders to give up their efforts to block creation of Telangana state. Former MP K Keshava Rao claimed that people of Andhra-Rayalaseema regions were in favour of division of the state. PTI