Congress condemns BJP's Telangana Deeksha in Delhi

The Congress Party on Monday accused the Bharatiya Janata Party of trying to draw mileage out of the demand for statehood for Telangana region. 

Addressing a press conference at Gandhi Bhavan, Pradesh Congress Committee spokesperson N Tulasi Reddy recalled that the BJP, which gave the slogan of One Vote - Two States, changed its stand after the National Democratic Alliance came to power at the Centre. Referring to a speech delivered by the then Home Minister LK Advani on September 21, 2000, in an event of National Industrial Security Academy (NISA), he said Advani categorically ruled out formation of Telangana. He furnished the newspaper clippings wherein Advani was quoted as saying that since the capital Hyderabad is located in Telangana region, there was no need for bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh.

However, Tulasi Reddy said that the BJP was now trying to gain political mileage and Advani has started advocating statehood for the Telangana region. He said other BJP leaders including Ch Vidyasagar Rao openly objected to Telangana formation. Describing the BJP's hunger fast in Delhi for Telangana as a political stunt, he said that the BJP was just trying to encash upon the Telangana sentiments.