Congress promises to address concerns of Seemandhra

The Congress leadership Tuesday assured its MPs from Seemandhra that their concerns would be addressed in the bill to be tabled in parliament for formation of separate Telangana state.

After the three-hour long meeting, party general secretary Digvijaya Singh told reporters that the MPs and the central ministers from Seemandhra expressed their views and concerns.

"Congress party will take up these issues with the ministers in the GoM (Group of Ministers) to ensure that it is a win-win situation for both people of Telangana and Seemandhra," he said.

The MPs and central ministers from both Telangana and Seemandhra attended the meeting, called by the party leadership ahead of the parliament session beginning Wednesday. Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh, who is also a member of GoM, was also present.

Six MPs from Seemandhra who had moved a no-confidence motion against the UPA government during the previous session were also invited to the meeting.

One of them L. Rajagopal left the meeting in a huff. He said the MPs from Seemandhra would not allow parliament to function if the bill rejected in both houses of Andhra Pradesh legislature was tabled.

Another MP Ananta Venkatarama Reddy wondered how the government can do justice to Seemandhra without going through over 9,000 suggestions and amendments mooted in the state legislature.

Union Minister of State for Finance J.D. Seelam told reporters that they conveyed to the leadership that it can move forward on the Telangana issue only after addressing the concerns of Seemandhra people.