Telugu Desam Party supremo and former Andhra Pradesh chief minister Chandrababu Naidu on Monday walked out of the National Integration Council (NIC) meeting protesting against the decision of the UPA government in disallowing him to raise the issue of the bifurcation of his state.
Later, while addressing a press conference, Mr Naidu alleged that the Union ministers P. Chidambaram and Sushikumar Shinde prevented him from raising the “burning issue” at the instance of Congress president Sonia Gandhi. He said he disallowed on the ground that the issue was not part of the agenda. He also questioned the rationale behind permitting former chief minister of Assam Prafulla Kumar Mahanta to talk about the law and order problem in his state on account of the demand for a separate Bodoland. He asked, “My point is, if I am not allowed to speak such a serious issue in such a forum where top leadership of the country is present, where will I go?”
Squarely blaming Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for failing to sort out the Telangana tangle amicably he demanded that the Centre immediately begin to discuss the issue with all the stakeholders from both sides of the divide. “How can you ensure national integration if 10 crore Telugus develop hatred among themselves?” he asked. He further said the strike in Seemandhra region has completely brought his state to a standstill from the status of a “dynamic” and “progressive” state.
Answering a question on Jagan Mohan Reddy, he said that the CBI has become Congress Bureau of Investigation and was doing the bidding of its political masters. He alleged that Congress has struck a deal with both YSRC and the TRS in an attempt to gain political mileage in the run-up to the 2014 general and Assembly polls.