Hyderabad to be capital of Telangana: G K Pillai

New Delhi, Hyderabad, Dec 11 (ANI): Union Home Secretary G K Pillai today said Hyderabad would be the capital of the proposed Telangana state, and the process for the formation of the new state would continue.

Pillai said Union Home Minister P Chidambaram has already announced that the process for the formation of the Telangana State has begun.

"The home minister has made the statement that the process of forming the new state has been started and I am sure in the coming days as people understand the real implications of what it meant, I think the agitation would die down and the process of formation of new state would continue," he added.

Asked about the future of Hyderabad, Pillai said, "I think it will always be the capital of Telangana."

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today assured lawmakers of coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema that the Central Government would not do anything in haste on the Telangana issue.

The MLAs belonging to coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema met the Prime Minister today afternoon and expressed their disagreement over the Telangana statehood issue.

A shutdown has been called in coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema districts in protest against the Centre's decision to give its nod for initiating the process for the formation of a Telangana State.

There have been several incidents of violence during a 96-hour bandh called, with protesters trying to block traffic and attacking buses. Lawyers clashed at the Andhra High Court over the Telangana issue. A bus was burnt in Tirupati by the protestors.

Students, who are once again spearheading the agitation, this time against a separate Telangana state, took out rallies across Kadappa district and held a "rail roko" in Rajampet, besides burning effigies of AICC president Sonia Gandhi and Union Home Minister P Chidambaram at Visakhapatnam. Protests also turned violent in Kadiri, Gooty and other towns, in Anantapur, protestors smashed buses.

Cutting across party lines, 128 MLAs belonging to different political parties handed over their resignation letters to the State Assembly Speaker N Kiran Kumar Reddy today in protest against the Centre's decision to initiate the process for the formation of the Telangana State.

The announcement sanctioning a new State has backfired colossally for the Centre.

The Andhra Pradesh assembly has been adjourned till Monday following the protests. (ANI)