AP special status: Cong to send 1 cr SMS to CM, Union ministers

Hyderabad: Scaling up its agitation for the special category status to Andhra Pradesh, the Congress will launch a campaign wherein it will sent one crore SMSes to Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu and Union ministers from the state.

The campaign, to be led by the National Students Union of India (NSUI) and Youth Congress, would be organised from September 23-30, a party release stated today.

The promise of special status, among others, to Seemandhra (new Andhra Pradesh) was made by the then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in Parliament during the bifurcation of state last year.

Attacking the ruling TDP-BJP combine for not granting special status even one year after coming to power, Congress had earlier held a campaign of lodging police complaints against top leaders of TDP and BJP for allegedly "deceiving" people.

For its part, the Centre has asked NITI Ayog Vice- Chairman Arvind Panagariya to prepare a road map on the promises made to new Andhra Pradesh.

Meanwhile, reacting to criticism by Congress leaders, Union minister and senior BJP leader M Venkaiah Naidu told reporters today that Congress divided Andhra Pradesh just ahead of elections last year for political gains after "sleeping" over the issue for past ten years.

Naidu also said that he wondered why the Congress did not include the promise of special status in the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act.