Hyderabad: Protesting against "ambivalent"
stand of his party on Telangana statehood issue, a TDP MLA
from Nizamabad district on Thursday resigned and is set to join the
Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS), sources said.
Gampa Govardhan, who is TDP MLA from Kamareddy in
Nizamabad district, has faxed his resignation letter to the
TDP headquarters at NTR Bhavan here this morning, they said.
"Despite a clear sentiment for a separate state, the TDP
has failed to come out with a clear stand on Telangana. Hence,
I have decided to quit the party," Govardhan said in the
resignation letter.
The legislator met TRS president K Chandrasekhar Rao two
days ago sparking speculations that he might switch sides.
He also did not turn up at the Telugu Desam legislature
party office yesterday when 32 other TDP MLAs submitted their
resignations to the Legislature Secretary over the statehood
issue.
Govardhan becomes the second legislator after Pocharam
Srinivas Reddy from Nizamabad district to quit TDP and join
TRS.
Pocharam is now contesting the by-election, necessitated
by his own resignation, from Banswada constituency on TRS
ticket.
Meanwhile, Errabilli Dayakar Rao, TDP convener of
Telangana Forum, alleged that KCR was using coercive tactics
to lure TDP MLAs into TRS.
TDP president N Chandrababu Naidu, however, is said to
have remarked that the exit of one or two MLAs would not
affect the party.
PTI
First Published: Thursday, September 29, 2011, 18:02