TRS not to attend Chidambaram's Telangana meet

The Telangana Rashtra Samithi on Sunday decided not to attend the meeting called by Home Minister P Chidambaram in New Delhi on Thursday to discuss the Justice Srikrishna Committee report on Telangana, saying there would be divergent views at the meeting as parties will have members from both regions.

TRS chief K Chandrasekhara Rao said divergent views by representatives of political parties from Telangana and non-Telangana regions at the meeting will lead to "further contradiction and confusion."

"It is not proper for Chidambaram to invite two representatives to the meeting. It is like encouraging political parties to give divergent views," he said.

"Two divergent views are expressed by the same political party, it leads to further contradiction and confusion. This is what happened when the Centre called a similar meeting of eight political parties last year," he said.

The TRS chief, whose fast-unto-death led the Centre to announce that it would take steps for the formation of a separate Telangana state, said he had every reason to apprehend that the government is "subtly aiming at that (to generate divergent views)".

Chidambaram had on Thursday proposed to call a meeting of eight political parties from the state to discuss the report. Each political party has been asked to send two representatives to put forth their points.

Parties like the Congress and the Telugu Desam Party are expected to send one representative each from Telangana and non-Telangana areas.

"If the government of India is really serious about knowing the official stand of the parties in all fairness and propriety only one member from each party should be invited," he said.

"If that cannot be done the meeting will become a futile exercise," he said.

Rao said the TRS may participate in the meeting if only one representative from each party is invited. He has also written to Chidambaram in this regard.

He also demanded that the Centre should complete the process of formation of a Telangana state by introducing a bill in Parliament during the budget session.

"If that is done there will be a permanent solution to the problem otherwise it will remain as a perennial source of friction and unrest," he said.

When said that that his decision to boycott the meeting could attract criticism that he is derailing the democratic process, Rao said the Centre had already promised to form separate Telangana and political parties had agreed to support the demand.

"It is unethical for political parties to express divergent views when they have already promised to support the separate Telangana demand. The Centre has already agreed to form separate Telangana," he said.