Ensure bifurcation in proper way: Naidu

• TDP chief tells President Centre mishandling issue

• Centre’s action causing bad blood between regions

Hyderabad: Telugu Desam Party (TDP) president N Chandrababu Naidu on Thursday urged President Pranab Mukherjee to see that proper procedure was followed before taking forward the State bifurcation process.

Naidu, who met the President late in the evening, told him that no party or individual was happy with the contents of the Draft Telangana Bill that had been sent to the Assembly. The Centre’s mishandling of the situation resulted in differences between the people of two regions, and the Telangana imbroglio got further complicated.

In its hurry to gain political advantage, the Congress Party created new problems and was violating all the Constitutional procedures that were supposed to be followed in dividing a State. Referring to the Article 3 of the Constitution, Naidu pointed out that the first step to divide a State should begin from the State Assembly. But in this case, all decisions were taken by the Centre.

Speaking to media persons, Naidu said if the Centre had called the stakeholders from both sides including social activists, leaders of the employee associations and others, before setting the process of division in motion, things would have been different.

To a query, he said the genesis of bifurcation had taken place during the Y S Rajasekhara Reddy’s regime. Asked if TDP had changed its stand on the Telangana issue, he stated that he was insisting that equal justice be done to all the regions.

The Congress Party leadership only thought of votes, and felt that by giving Telangana State and having alliance with TRS would help it gain advantage in the region, he said. In the process, it had even ignored its own party men and failed to convince them including the Chief Minister, he added.