TDP chief urges President to intervene in AP bifurcation issue

Noting that the Centre's "unconventional and undemocratic" method to bifurcate Andhra Pradesh is a threat to "federal polity", Telugu Desam Party requested the President of India tonight to direct the Centre to find an amicable solution before bifurcation.
TDP also commended the erstwhile NDA government for having "followed democratic procedure" in the creation of Uttarakhand, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh states in 2000, wherein the respective states passed resolutions in their assemblies and said this should have been taken as a good precedent for formation of new states.
In a three-page letter to the President, TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu alleged the Centre is going ahead with the bifurcation process in a "casual and frivolous manner" without addressing concerns of people of all regions.

TDP has also decided to boycott the scheduled meeting with the Group of Ministers in New Delhi tomorrow to discuss the bifurcation issue.
"I personally met you on September 21 on the issue and also addressed three letters to the Prime Minister. But the Prime Minister does not seem to be taking any steps to initiate consultations with stakeholders. Unless exhaustive consultations are made with stakeholders, who are organised as various Joint Action Committees, there may not be an amicable solution to this issue," Chandrababu said in his letter.
"The present process of bifurcation of the state is not in accordance with the spirit of the Constitution and established conventions. The then NDA government had followed democratic procedure in the creation of Uttarakhand, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh states in 2000, wherein the respective states passed resolutions in their assemblies.

"This should have been taken as a good precedent for formation of new states but the Centre is not taking similar initiatives in the case of Andhra Pradesh," he wrote.
He requested the President to direct the Centre to follow constitutional procedures and established conventions by inviting all stakeholders for consultations to resolve all contentious issues and only then proceed with the bifurcation after finding an amicable solution.