TRS will not merge with Congress

With TRS ruling out merger with the Congress party, the latter has asked its cadres in Telangana to be ready to go alone in the forthcoming elections to the Lok Sabha and the state assembly.

Congress leaders from Telangana also made it clear that they are not for an alliance with Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS).
 

TRS chief K. Chandrasekhara Rao told reporters Monday night that the party has decided not to merge with the Congress. He, however, said if any party approaches TRS for alliance, it would consider the same.

"We don't want any alliance with TRS," senior leader Mohammed Ali Shabbir told reporters here Tuesday.

Shabbir, who is the vice-president of Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee, asked party cadre to be ready to face the elections on their own. He was confident that Congress would win majority of 119 assembly and 17 Lok Sabha seats in Telangana.

He also asked the party workers to gear up for municipal elections scheduled to be held March 30.

He said TRS chief had no role in formation of Telangana state and claimed that it was only due to efforts of Congress president Sonia Gandhi that the 60-year-old dream of Telangana people came true.

"Congress is not depending on any other party," said another leader and former minister D. Sridhar Babu. He is confident that people of Telangana will back Congress as they know the role played by the party in carving out the separate state.

The Congress leaders said the party did not create Telangana state for votes and seats. "We sacrificed our government. We expelled our MPs from the party because the party president wanted to fulfill the promise made to people of Telangana," Sridhar said.

Shabbir criticised TRS leader for keeping quiet in parliament during the debate on Telangana bill. He also reminded him of his promise that a Dalit will be the first chief minister of the state.