Former deputy prime minister and senior BJP leader L.K. Advani on Wednesday said BJP would back a Telangana bill if Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress president Sonia Gandhi decide to form the new state in the coming Winter Session of Parliament.
Mr Advani also said his Janchetna Yatra was not aimed at the next elections, but to mobilise public opinion against corruption, bring back `25 lakh crore black money stashed in foreign banks, use money to develop 6 lakh backward villages and make a “strong Bharat”.
Contrary to his focus on corruption and bringing black money from abroad, Mr Advani had to first address the Telangana issue all through in view of the tremendous response from the people in the state.
Mr Advani asserted there was no need for a resolution to be passed in the Assembly to carve out a separate state, adding that a simple majority in Parliament is enough to make Telangana as per the Constitution.
“These two people (PM, Sonia Gandhi) decide, the main Opposition BJP with 116 MPs in the Lok Sabha and 50 in the Rajya Sabha would support the bill and a Telangana state would be a reality on January 1, 2012. There will be no problem,” he remarked.