Botsa defends Azad's statement on Telangana

Pradesh Congress Committee president Botsa Satyanarayana on Monday claimed that the Congress-led UPA Government at the Centre never said that it would not give Telangana State.

Addressing a press conference at Gandhi Bhavan, Botsa said the recent statement of Union Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad should not be misinterpreted. He said Azad only stated that the decision on Telangana issue would be delayed, but he never said that the Centre would not grant statehood for the region. Stating that the Centre was making serious efforts to resolve the crisis, he said that the Centre needs to take several factors into consideration before accepting a demand for the statehood.

The PCC chief also informed that the party's membership drive would be launched on October 18 at Gandhi Bhavan. Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy, Deputy Chief Minister Damodar Rajanarasimha and other top leaders will participate in the function. He has appealed to the youth and intellectuals to join the Congress party for the development of the State.

When asked when the Congress party was planning to launch its padayatra, Botsa, in a lighter vein, said that his doctor did not advise him to go on padayatra and his health was in good condition. Ridiculing the promises being made by Telugu Desam Party president N Chandrababu Naidu during his "Vastunna Mee Kosam" padayatra, he said people were fully aware that Naidu was habitual of making fake promises and he would be never believed. He also described YSR Congress party leader Sharmila's "Maro Praja Prasthanam" padayatra as the result of sibling rivalry. He said Sharmila was trying to emerge stronger than her brother YS Jagan Mohan Reddy, who is lodged in jail, in the disproportionate assets case.

Botsa said that there was no need for the Congress party to undertake padayatra as people were wise enough to judge the performance of a good government.