Hyderabad, Feb 4: Telangana Senior Citizens Association has alleged that the Congress legislators of the Telangana region were the real culprits for the inordinate delay in formation of separate Telangana State. Though the Congress MPs from the region were agitating for tabling of Telangana Bill in Parliament, the legislators of the region belonging to the Congress and Telugu Desam party, remained non-cooperative, it added.

Speaking to media persons here on Saturday, Association president Prof. Sridhara Swamy, vice-president Chanda Ramulu, general secretary V Chalapathi Rao  and executive members N. Somaiah and Dr Jagadishchandra said that though Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram declared on December 9, 2009 that a process for carving out separate Telangana State had begun, the Seemandhra MPs and MLAs of Congress and Telugu Desam parties successfully prevented the Centre from introducing Telangana Bill in Parliament by resorting to resignations en masse on the very next morning. Though the Congress MPs of the region were sincerely exerting pressure on the Union government to introduce Telangana Bill, their efforts were ending in vain due to non-cooperative attitude of Congress and TDP legislators of the region, they said. 

The Telangana senior citizens pointed out that loss of lives and injustices were going on unabated due to the fraudulent policies of the Congress high command in the name of holding talks with all concerned for achieving consensus on the issue. The association has demanded that the Centre immediately take steps to introduce Telangana Bill in Parliament as per Article 3 of the Constitution.

Stating that students were implicated in false criminal cases and lodged in jails by the State government, the Association expressed displeasure over the attitude of Telangana ministers clinging to their posts. Extending solidarity with the agitating junior doctors, the Association demanded that the government find a lasting solution to the problems of the medicos.

The Telangana senior citizens also condemned Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy’s connivance with Leader of Opposition and TDP supremo N. Chandrababu Naidu’s in his “invasion” of the Telangana region. The Association has lamented that Congress president Sonia Gandhi, Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh and Union Home Minister P.Chidambaram did not even bother to acknowledge receipt of the Association’s letters in this respect.

Stating that government employees, teachers and college lecturers were preparing to go on flash strike once again on Telangana issue, the Association took the “lakhs of jobs for youth” program as a ploy to wean away youth from the Telangana agitation. It also demanded that the government clearly spell Telangana share in the appointments to be made. All appointments should be made in conformity with the recommendations of Girglani Committee, it added.

The Telangana Senior Citizens Association has called upon the senior citizens of the region to get prepared to play their role in the achievement of separate Telangana State.