By IANS
Hyderabad : Senior Congress leaders from Telangana in Andhra Pradesh, who had gone to New Delhi to press for a separate statehood for the region, Sunday returned disappointed after they failed to meet party president Sonia Gandhi.
G. Venkatswamy, the Congress party’s deputy leader in the Lok Sabha, and other leaders in the group demanding separate statehood for the region returned from Delhi after waiting for five days for an appointment with Gandhi.
The group led by Venkatswamy, however, said they would not quit the party and were hopeful that the party leadership would take a stand in favour of a separate state to be carved out of Andhra Pradesh.
Venkatswamy, who is also a member of the Congress Working Committee, and others wanted to convey to Gandhi that there were strong public sentiments in favour of a separate Telangana state and the party should make its stand clear on the issue.
Venkatswamy was still hopeful that his group would be able to meet Gandhi later. He told reporters that separate Telangana could be achieved only through the Congress.
Congress legislator and Telangana Development Board chairman U. Purshottam Reddy, who threatened to quit if the central leadership failed to give a categorical assurance, claimed the group’s visit to the national capital was successful. “We have conveyed our views to the party leadership,” he told reporters here.
The representatives met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and some senior leaders Feb 5 to press their demand.
But the denial of an appointment by Gandhi is being seen as a major blow to the group and it came amid reports that Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy succeeded in convincing the central leadership that there was no public sentiment in the region for separate statehood.
Rajasekhara Reddy, who hails from Rayalseema region, was in Delhi before the Telangana group landed there. He reportedly told the party leadership that the Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS), which is fighting for separate Telangana, was not as strong as it appeared. He also told them that the threat by TRS legislators to resign en masse March 6 would have no impact.
Meanwhile, TRS chief K. Chandrasekhara Rao said denial of appointment with Gandhi was humiliation of senior leaders like Venkatswamy, and advised them to quit the Congress and join hands with TRS to fight for the separate Telangana state.