T demand only because people are divided: Ponnam

Stating that the reason behind the demand for a separate state was because the people of Andhra Pradesh were divided, Karimnagar MP Ponnam Prabhakar said that Union Home Minister P Chidambaram’s statement in the Lok Sabha on Friday that the divisions among political parties in Andhra Pradesh is the main stumbling block to the formation of Telangana does not hold water.

Mr Prabhakar said, “Mr Chidambaram has accepted the fact that the political parties are indeed divided over the issue. These divisions reflect the opinion of the people. This division is the root cause for the separate statehood demand. Take note of this division and agree to bifurcating Andhra Pradesh.”

The MP also pointed out that the political parties, particularly the main opposition Telugu Desam Party, have consistently maintained that they have not made any ‘U turn’ on the issue.

He had a solution for the conflicting signals emerging from the political parties.

“Set a deadline of a week to each political party to clearly say that it is taking a U turn. If the parties still maintain the position they had adopted till December 7, 2009, then the Centre has no problem in going ahead with the bifurcation,” Mr Prabhakar said.

He continued, “If the presidents of all the political parties which Mr Chidambaram named (The Congress, The TDP, the YSR Congress Party and the AIMIM) declare that they are going to change their stand, then the consultation process has to go ahead. Why is it necessary now when the presidents of these political parties deny that they have taken any “U Turn” on the issue?”

If the deadline is set, many other issues will also be clarified, the MP opined.