KCR ready to break bread with Sonia?
HYDERABAD: Will TRS chief K Chandrasekhar Rao break bread with Congress president Sonia Gandhi in the coming days? Informed sources told that Congress Central leaders conveyed the message to Rao that he should consider a meeting with Sonia Gandhi to formally thank her for delivering the Telangana State.
At a couple of press conferences following the Cabinet decision on Telangana, he did thank her but didn't pay her a visit. Rao is understood to have sought the opinion of party leaders on the Congress suggestion. Apparently, the Congress intends to have absolute clarity on the political equations in Telangana by the time the T bill is tabled in Parliament.
Obviously, both the options ' an alliance between the Congress and TRS or an outright merger of the separatist party with the Congress ' are on the table. If and when the meeting takes place between Rao and Sonia, they are expected to discuss the pros and cons of the two options.
Though Rao had often said he would merge his party with the Congress if it formed a separate T State, ever since the CWC decision on Telangana, he has been maintaining that his approach to the Congress would be made known only after the T bill is passed in Parliament.
During his recent visit to Hyderabad, AICC secretary Ramachandra Khuntia is said to have sought the opinion of Congress leaders on TRS. While some reportedly preferred an alliance, others felt merger would be better.
In the event of an alliance, there are apprehensions both within the Congress and the TRS that difficulties might arise over seat-sharing. The Congress is reportedly willing to accommodate the TRS in respect of Assembly seats, but wants a lion's share of Lok Sabha seats.
Congress is reportedly willing to accommodate the TRS in respect of Assembly seats, not Lok Sabha seats. In 2009, it won 51 of the 119 Assembly seats and 12 of the 17 LS seats in the region. 'If TRS can't trust us, we can't trust them either. Preconditions won't help,' Sonia had reportedly said.
News Posted: 6 January, 2014
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