Kiran Kumar to quit soon, may float a new party: Ministers

Hyderabad, Feb 17: Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy is contemplating to resign from his post against the state's division and launching a new political party, two state ministers said.

"The whole country says the (Telangana) Bill for division is undemocratic. Still, they say that we will go ahead and make the Bill win by hook or crook, pass even by voice vote. In this situation, there is a need for a new party. Kiran Kumar Reddy would definitely form a new party and try to keep the state united.

A number of Cong leaders in Coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema might quit the party

"We actually decided that we should quit on February 16. But, main Opposition BJP says that the Bill has not been tabled. The Chief Minister is not quitting today to strengthen that. When it is officially announced that the Bill has been tabled in parliament, then he will quit and all of us would quit," state Law Minister Erasu Pratap Reddy said.

He was speaking after a consultative meeting held by the Chief Minister here with several state ministers and MLAs from Seemandhra regions about resigning from his post and the idea of floating a new political party. Speculation has been rife here about the Chief Minister's moves in the wake of the Centre going ahead with division.

BJP and six other parties had said on February 13 that the Telangana Bill had not been tabled in Parliament though the ruling Congress asserted that Bill was, indeed, introduced.

State Minor Irrigation Minister TG Venkatesh has also said that the Chief Minister planned to quit his post. "There is an argument that the Bill had not been tabled. BJP also says that Bill was not tabled. In view of the advice (given by some Seemandhra MPs and intellectuals), we feel that tomorrow or day after tomorrow, as per the Bill being tabled, we feel he may go. That is what we got as a signal," he said.

Kiran Kumar Reddy is understood to have interacted with the ministers and MLAs about the possibility of making the party a success in the event of stepping down from his post.

Replying to a query about his future course of action, Pratap Reddy said they would take a decision as per the feed back from their activists or followers.

It is expected that a number of Congress leaders in the Coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema regions may quit Congress in the wake of the ruling party's determination to go ahead with state's division.

PTI