By IANS,
Hyderabad: The political impasse in Andhra Pradesh over the proposed move to divide the state continued Tuesday with some legislators asking the assembly speaker to accept their resignations.
Legislators from the main opposition Telugu Desam Party (TDP) from coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema regions met Speaker Kirankumar Reddy and demanded that their resignations be accepted.
After the meeting, TDP leader Ashok Gajapati Raju told reporters that the speaker assured them that he would consult constitutional experts and take a decision in a couple of days.
As many as 138 members of the 294-member assembly from the two regions have submitted their resignations to the speaker to protest the central government’s decision to initiate the process for formation of a separate Telangana state.
The legislators include 80 from the ruling Congress party, 44 of TDP and 14 of Praja Rajyam Party (PRP). The mass resignations had forced the adjournment of the assembly sine die Monday.
With the central government keeping mum on their demand for withdrawing the proposed move, the legislators are trying to mount pressure through mass resignations, protests and hunger strikes.
The ministers, MPs, state legislators and leaders of all the parties are divided on regional lines. The TDP is facing the threat of a split, with its leaders from Telangana pressing the leadership to divide the party.
Cutting across party lines, legislators Tuesday marched from the state assembly to the secretariat before paying their tributes to Potti Sriramulu on his death anniversary.
The Andhra leader died this day in 1952 while fasting to separate the Telugu speaking people of then Madras Presidency. A year later, Andhra State was formed with Kurnool as the capital.
The Andhra State was merged with Telangana region (then called Hyderabad State) in 1956 to form Andhra Pradesh.
The central government last week agreed to initiate the process for granting separate statehood to Telangana region, comprising 10 districts including Hyderabad.