At a time when all political parties in AP are trying to outdo each other regarding their stand on statehood for Telangana, T Devender Goud, chief of Nava Telangana Party, seems to have outsmarted all of them. On Thursday evening, he managed to elicit a response from UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi, who had till then maintained a stoic silence on the issue. Goud, who launched the Nava Telangana Party after quitting the TDP, was apparently assured by Sonia Gandhi that she would seriously consider the sentiments of the people of Telangana, which is an underdeveloped region.Meanwhile, the Telugu Desam Party (TDP), in a complete u-turn to its earlier stand, has decided to support the demand for a separate Telangana state while Chiranjeevi’s Praja Rajyam Party too has decided to “respect the sentiments of Telangana people”.Goud claimed that Sonia has assured him that the demand to carve out a separate Telangana state was top priority. It is by far the only indication from the UPA on Telangana. Goud said Sonia has promised to discuss it in detail after PM Manmohan Singh returns from his Japan trip.“Myself and several party leaders have been camping in Delhi since the last two days to meet Sonia and discuss the issue. We, a team of eight members, impressed upon her that all other parties are spelling out their stand and it is high time the Congress should express its stand too,” Goud said.Goud also reportedly reminded Sonia about L K Advani’s promise of statehood to Telangana in case the NDA came to power. The UPA had constituted a sub-committee to look into the demand for a separate state for Telangana.For Goud and his party, it is a small victory of sorts. Miffed with the TDP and Chandrababu Naidu for not spelling out the party’s stand on Telangana, Goud, who was number two in the TDP, quit on June 24 and launched a new party. “Our party’s sole aim is to get justice for the people of Telangana and separate statehood for the region,” Goud said.
