Telangana state in 3 months if elected: BJP
Promising that it will create a separate Telengana state within three months if voted to power at the Centre in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, the BJP on Wednesday said corruption and Telengana will be its major poll planks for the general elections. The party also regretted that formation of Telangana was not part of its party’s manifesto in 1998 when the NDA came to power for the first time.
Attacking the Congress-led UPA government over Telangana issue, the party claimed that the government was not interested in meeting the demand of separate Telengana.
Joining activists from Andhra Pradesh on the last day of the three-day fast to press for the separate statehood demand, BJP parliamentary party chairman L.K. Advani asked the people to elect a party which includes Telangana in its election manifesto and stop believing in Congress’ “false promises”.
“There is no other alternative but to change the government in New Delhi. We all have to take a decision of believing in party which is serious on this issue and promises to form the state in its manifesto,” said Mr Advani. He regretted that formation of Telangana was not part of his party’s manifesto in 1998 when NDA came to power for the first time.
“We had promised formation of Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Uttarakhand in our manifesto and we created these states. Had we mentioned formation of Telangana also, it would have happened,” Mr Advani said.
Claiming that NDA allies were not in support over the issue then, Mr Advani said, “Our allies were not in favour, though later they also agreed. But I sincerely regret this. This will not happen again. We promise our whole hearted support to this movement”.
Addressing the protesters, Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj said “this wait will be fruitful. Nothing can stop us from getting Telangana. ...Telangana will be created in three months once BJP government is sworn in.”
Ms Swaraj further said that the UPA government is not interested in creating Telangana though it had mentioned in its election manifesto.
Earlier, Ms Swaraj’s counterpart in Rajya Sabha Arun Jaitley also addressed the party workers at Jantar Mantar on the issue.
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