Telangana a promise if voted to power: PRP

The Praja Rajyam Party found itself in a piquant situation on Friday when its president K. Chiranjeevi had to clarify that spokesman Katti Padma Rao’s statement that the party was in favour of a separate Telangana was the official policy.

On Friday afternoon, Mr. Rao categorically said at a press conference that if voted to power, it would move a resolution in the Assembly favouring a separate Telangana State.

He was only defending the Yuva Rajyam (Youth Wing of Praja Rajyam) president Pawan Kalyan who drew flak recently when he asked the Government to clear its stand on Telangana.

When repeatedly asked about how the party could go about the process of facilitating the formation of a separate State, he said they would definitely do what they could on the matter, depending on the majority they got in the general elections, at the State and the Centre.

Later, when presspersons asked Praja Rajyam president K. Chiranjeevi to expand on his party’s standpoint on the issue, he said he had all along been saying he would do whatever the people wanted.

When asked again, he said the terminology used by different leaders in the same leader could be different and that it did not mean any distortion in the party’s stand.

When asked if Mr. Pawan Kalyan’s criticism and the manner in which he hit out at Congress leaders, meant the Praja Rajyam was giving the go-by to ‘Gandhigiri’, Mr. Chiranjeevi said it was not so. “He is young and enthusiastic. We should only go by what he meant ”, he added.

Telangana State welcome, says Praja Rajyam

The Praja Rajyam will welcome formation of Telangana state if the Centre decides on it.

Party’s political spokesmen C Ramachandraih and Tammineni Sitaram told reporters here that the PRP would readily respond and state its stand if the Pranab Mukherji Committee on Telangana sought its opinion. It was for the Centre to initiate proceedings, they said. Reacting to the comment made by the Telugu Desam that the PRP did not have a stance on any issue, they made it clear that the party had clear views on every issue.

To the charge that the PRP was encouraging political migrations, they countered by saying that Chandrababu Naidu was the biggest turncoat in the State and wondered why he had invited Eedara Haribabu and Kommi Laxmaih Naidu into the TDP.

“Chandrababu Naidu has given a call to those who left the party to come back. They are afraid of the impact of the PRP and Naidu is in jitters,’’ the PRP leaders ridiculed.

Praja Rajyam to Support Statehood for Telangana

Praja Rajyam president K. Chiranjeevi declared on Friday that if the Centre came up with a proposal for creation of a separate Telangana State, his party would unconditionally support it.

Addressing an impressive gathering in this town, he recalled that at his first public meeting in Tirupati on August 26, he said he would abide by people’s wish on the issue of a separate Telangana. 

“I remember that the Telangana movement started from this very place in 1969. I know how important it is to you,” he said.

Mr. Chiranjeevi said: “If you so wish, make sure that your voice is heard by the powers that be. The only way you can make your voice heard by the Centre is by electing the right people, those whom you trust will do everything they can to improve your lot. You can trust the PR because the party was born out of the people’s wish.”

Ever since he announced the second leg of his ‘Praja Ankitha Yatra’ to cover three Telangana districts of Karimnagar, Warangal and Khammam, he had said that political parties were eager to hear what he had to say on the issue. 

He asked people if they were backward, if the region lacked human and mineral resources and when they roared their response, he said, “Telangana is not backward. It has been pushed to backwardness.”

“Had the political parties shown a little interest in developing a backward region, your lives would have improved. Successive governments have taken you for a ride and used you politically. 

Do not allow yourselves to be cheated any more,” he said to thunderous applause.

For the first time since he launched PR, Mr. Chiranjeevi launched a direct attack on the Congress government. 

In an oblique reference to the Telangana Rashtra Samithi, he reminded people that in alliance with a ‘regional party’, the ‘present government’ had come to power after promising Telangana. “Four years down the line, has anything like that happened? The only development was ‘more tears, weavers’ suicides, illiteracy, unemployment and more,” he said.

As the crowds screamed, ‘Jai Chiranjeevi’, the PR founder said ‘Jai Jagityala’ and ‘Jai Praja Rajyam’ before his convoy moved ahead towards Dharmapuri and Ramagundam.

Starting from Metpalli, he covered six Assembly constituencies.

PRP Chiranjeevi Telangana State ku Sye!

PRP Chiranjeevi Telangana State ku Sye! Read Sakshi Newspaper Article.