By IANS,
Hyderabad : People of Telangana region voted for development, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy said Sunday as the Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) suffered a setback in the by-elections from the state.
Reacting to the results of by-elections to four Lok Sabha and 18 assembly constituencies, ‘YSR’ as he is popularly called told a news conference it was the mandate for development and victory of people of Telangana.
The chief minister, however, also said the results were defeat of the TRS and not the pro-Telangana sentiment. “People have given a befitting reply to the politics of emotions and deceit,” he said.
The TRS could retain only two out of the four Lok Sabha seats and seven out of the 16 assembly seats.
“People have reposed faith in the Congress government and the development works done during the last four years. We will re-dedicate ourselves to development,” he said.
He said various development and welfare schemes, including the rural employment guarantee scheme and the farm loan waiver, helped the Congress. He felt that party president Sonia Gandhi’s charisma also worked in the by-polls.
“The results are more satisfying for us as we have also won some seats which we had not won for last 25 years,” said the chief minister.
The chief minister did not agree that the TDP’s win in one Lok Sabha and four assembly seats reflected anti-incumbency factor and pointed out that the votes secured by the TDP had come down compared to the 2004 elections.