Karat refutes govt`s claim on Telangana Bill

New Delhi: Rejecting government`s claim of having tabled the Telangana bill in Parliament, CPI(M) leader Prakash Karat on Sunday said the way it has been done is not "acceptable" to the party. "What happened in Parliament on Tuesday was unfortunate. We condemn it. But we cannot accept government`s claim that the Telangana Bill has been tabled in Parliament. There was trouble in the House. Opposition cannot accept it," Karat said after meeting YSR Congress leader Jagan Reddy here.

Jagan met Karat to seek his support against the government`s move on Telangana. Karat said, "It is an important Bill and should be discussed in Parliament. Every party and MP has a right to speak on it. Government cannot steamroll it." YSR Congress, which is stiffly opposing the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh, is seeking Left support for stalling creation of Telangana. Asking all opposition parties to oppose creation of Telangana, Jagan said, "If it is allowed to happen then it will create a bad precedence. Today it is Andhra, tomorrow it will be Karnataka, Tamil Nadu or Bengal." The opposition has to oppose the undemocratic way of the Centre, he stressed. YSR Congress is planning to stage a dharna at Jantar Mantar tomorrow on the issue.