TRS dares Cong MPs, MLAs to seek fresh mandate

Hyderabad, Sept 11: Alleging that the ruling Congress had 'betrayed' the people of Telangana, the separatist Telangana Rashtra Samiti today reiterated its challenge to all Congress MPs and MLAs from the Telangana region to tender their resignation and seek a fresh mandate from the people.

Reacting to the counter-challenge by Andhra Pradesh Sports Minister M Satyanarayana and Information Minister Md Ali Shabeer to TRS chief K Chandrasekara Rao and his deputy A Narendra to resign their MP seats and face them in electoral battle, three TRS leaders at a press conference here said ''all the TRS MPs and MLAs are ready to resign and dared the Congressmen to do the same and face the electorate again.'' ''Mr Satyanarayana Rao, who has taken back his resignation letter thrice, is no match to Mr Chandrasekara Rao and Mr Narendra, who have resigned from the UPA Government,'' the TRS leaders G Vijayarama Rao, E Rajender and Vinod opined, adding that ''let us go to the people once again to know which party enjoyed the people's support.'' While Chandrasekhara Rao was elected to Lok Sabha, Satyanarayana Rao won from one Assembly segment of seven under a Lok Sabha constituency and hence the challenge of the latter was untenable.

The fight should be between equals, the TRS leaders said.

The Congress had sent out a 'clear signal' to the people of the region prior to the last Lok Sabha and Assembly elections that by aligning with the TRS, which had been formed with the one-point agenda of getting carved a Telangana state from Andhra Pradesh, it was committed to the demand, the TRS leaders claimed.

They said Satyanarayana Rao was levelling wild allegation that Chandrasekhara Rao was involved in a cheating case as the Congress was 'frustrated' over the tremendous public response to the TRS rally at Siddipet.

The State Government was free to take to legal recourse, instead of making 'baseless allegations,' the TRS leaders said.

UNI