TDP may abstain from all-party meeting

Hyderabad: TDP may abstain from an all-party meeting convened by Union Home Minister P Chidambaram in New Delhi on January 6 when the Justice Srikrishna Committee report on the Telangana statehood issue will be released.

The party is expected to make an official announcement in this regard tomorrow, TDP sources said.

TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu met his senior colleagues and weighed the options of attending the all-party meeting in the backdrop of mounting pressure from party leaders from Telangana against their participation in the meet, they said.

Even party leaders from Andhra-Rayalaseema reportedly suggested it would be prudent to stay away from the meeting and not to fall prey to the Congress' "dubious game plan" on the contentious issue.

The TRS on January 1 had decided not to attend the meet in New Delhi, saying it was a "deliberate attempt" to seek divergent opinions on the issue. Echoing similar views, the BJP also said it will not participate in the meeting.

However, the Praja Rajyam Party will send senior leaders Kotagiri Vidyadhara Rao and C Ramachandraiah for the meeting.

Since the meeting is meant only to hand over the Committee report to various political parties, the party chief K Chiranjeevi has decided not to attend it himself and instead would send the two senior leaders, PRP sources said.

Last year, Chiranjeevi had represented his party at the all-party meeting on the statehood issue.

The Congress, CPI and CPM will be the other parties attending the meet in which Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy will take part in his official capacity.

The Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen has not yet decided on whether or not to attend the meeting.

Meanwhile, Chidambaram has turned down a request made by CPI state secretary K Narayana to distribute the committee report to political parties ahead of the January 6 meeting.

"Revealing the report before hand is not possible. You may please attend the all-party meeting where the report will be formally handed over to all," he said.

Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee President D Srinivas will reach New Delhi tomorrow for discussion on the statehood issue ahead of the all-party meeting.

However, he will not attend the meeting as the party has decided to send senior MP Kavuri Sambasiva Rao and senior MLA N Uttam Kumar Reddy as representatives from Andhra-Rayalaseema and Telangana regions respectively.