Reddy questions merits of Telangana state

He did so by half-heartedly defending the Congress high commands decision to bifurcate the state.

Andra Pradesh Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy,who was thought to have been prevailed upon to accept the Congress decision to bifurcate the state and oversee the division,stirred a hornets nest by questioning the merits and wisdom behind the announcement of Telangana state on Thursday.

He did so by half-heartedly defending the Congress high commands decision to bifurcate the state. A problem cannot be solved by creating a bigger problem. That is my message to the government at the Centre. I am neither opposing nor welcoming the decision on Telangana. My party has taken a decision but the Central government should address the concerns,problems and issues affecting all the people of all the regions in the state before going ahead with the decision that has been taken by the Congress party. In the anxiety to create a new state,rest of the state or regions in a particular state should not be ignored. Issues like water and power sharing,employment,and status of people born in Hyderabad should be taken into consideration before going ahead, Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy said.

Dominating a media conference for the first time since he became the Chief Minister in November 2010,Reddy said: I never wanted the pot to be broken without discussing or addressing the concerns of pieces that are going to be affected. Like thousands of people,I too was born and brought up in Hyderabad. What is my status today? Health,education,private employment,and many sectors have flourished in Hyderabad,what happens to all the people involved in it? When AP state was formed,people were told that Hyderabad was the capital and requested them to come over. Lakhs of people,thousands of doctors,advocates and other professionals came here and established themselves. Today,you are telling them that they are in a different state. What happens to all of them?

It was a different Chief Minister who faced the media. He actually asked journalists to keep quiet as he reeled off statistics of water and power sharing and actual consumption in Telangana in comparison with Coastal and Rayalaseema districts and number of non-Telangana government employees working in Hyderabad.

My Party has taken the decision to bifurcate the state but party leaders can make suggestions. On our request to reconsider the decision,our party has set up a committee,I request everyone who feels about it to meet,discuss and make suggestions to the committee, he said. The CM admitted that he did sign a letter that was sent to Sonia Gandhi requesting her to reconsider her decision on Telangana. Yes,I signed that letter which summed up the sentiments of people,MLAs,MLCs and ministers. It was our party which took the decision,so it was also our duty to brief our party president what people felt about it, Reddy said.