Hyderabad: The Congress leadership and Centre are going ahead unilaterally on the Telangana issue against all democratic principles, TDP Chief N Chandrababu Naidu alleged on Friday.
"This issue is not a personal issue of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Sonia Gandhi or Rahul Gandhi. This issue concerns 9 crore Telugu people. They cannot sit in Delhi and decide. You call stakeholders from both sides, discuss and then decide the issue," he said.
"I am asking the Prime Minister, 'did you speak on this issue even once?' I am asking Sonia Gandhi, 'have you given a statement about it?' I am asking Rahul Gandhi, 'you want to become the Prime Minister of this country. You are not talking about it. Is it not a national issue?'" he said.
Alleging that the Centre was violating the federal spirit in regard to the issue, he questioned the government's decision to bring in the Telangana Bill in the extended budget session of Parliament, which is meant for passing the vote-on-account budget.
"I am demanding. 'Do justice to both the regions. You want to give Telangana, convince Seemandhra people. You want to keep united Andhra (Pradesh), convince Telangana people.' In democracy, there must be discussion and, finally, you have to bring consensus," Naidu said.
The Telugu Desam Party was founded to fight for the welfare of Telugu people, Naidu said, stressing that he wanted the bifurcation issue to be sorted out amicably. "They are misusing Article 3. Article 3 was never imposed or used in earlier stages. There were commissions, committees, States Reorganisation Commission in bifurcation of states.
Even when three states were given by BJP, former Bihar Chief Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav differed once. He was then convinced. But you are not doing any such thing," he said. He also claimed that there was "match-fixing" between Congress, TRS and YSR Congress.
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