Best Joke of Year: TRS merger in Cong.

Scoffing at the predictions of Congress Core Committee member K Kesava Rao that the Telangana Rashtra Samithi will merge with the Congress party on the lines of Praja Rajyam Party, TRS president K Chandrasekhar Rao on Monday said that the words were `meaningless and without substance’.

Talking to media persons at TRS Bhavan, the TRS chief said he has no plans to merge the party with Congress and termed Mr Keshav Rao’s statement as `the best joke of the year.’ “There is no question of merging TRS into the Congress,” he said and added TRS will become a role model for other parties.

“Earlier I had plans to merge TRS with Congress, but with the condition that the Centre must announce a Telangana state in 2004 elections,” he said. KCR continued that after the death of 400 students and arrests of hundreds of people, I have no plans to merge my party with the Congress.”

He went on, “My primary goal is how to achieve separate Telangana state. My second goal is how to develop the Telangana state after its formation.” KCR added, “Many leaders are quitting their parties and joining the TRS openly and strengthening it.” He said, “What is the need to merge the party, which is being strengthened day by day with the joining of lot of people and leaders from various parties.”

Stating that he would intensify the agitation for Telangana, KCR described the Praja Rajyam Party as a ‘cine party’. “Ours is an agitational party for Telangana and not a cine party, which comes and goes,” he pointed out. “If by-elections for the state were to be held, the TRS would sweep Telangana and the party of Former Kadapa MP YS Jaganmohan Reddy will get clear majority in the Seemandhra region,” KCR predicted.