Telangana upsurge: Azad favours talks

Union health minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, who is in charge of Andhra Pradesh affairs, on Friday said the dialogue with the representatives of MPs, MLAs and ministers who had resigned in support of a separate state of Telangana has not yet ended and talks will continue. “I had two rounds of

meetings with the representatives of these MLAs, MPs and ministers. I hope the discussion will continue. Dialogue has not yet over,” Azad said while responding to a query on Telangana upsurge. The Union minister flew in to Jammu from New Delhi amid heavy rains to attend the Jammu Cooperative Women Conference at Maralia, Miran Sahib, about 15 km south-west of Jammu city.
Azad had also met the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress president Sonia Gandhi, and briefed them about the evolving situation in Andhra Pradesh.
He had earlier said the Telangana issue was sensitive and complex and it required wider consultations.
Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar is likely to take a decision on the resignation of 13 MPs from Telangana region before the Monsoon session of Parliament that begins on August Ist. Of the 13 resignations, nine are of Congress MPs and two each of TDP and TRS.
Union home minister P Chidambaram had on July 4 said that the Centre was yet to take a final decision on the issue and that it would try to expedite the consultation process.
On the resignation of the minister for communications and IT Dayanidhi Maran in 2G Spectrum scam after telecom minister A Raja, Azad termed it unfortunate, but quickly added, “There is no difference between minister and common man before the law. Law will take its own course and those are guilty will be punished.”
Responding to a question regarding Hurriyat Conference chairman Syed Ali Shah Geelani’s “rejection” to stone throwing, the Union health minister welcomed the statement, saying “It was an endorsement to what we had been saying since long.”
“We had repeatedly saying that guns, bullets and stones would yield nothing. I want to congratulate the people of valley, especially youth who, finally, feet and believe that guns and stones were no solution to any issue as it is not in favour of the state. It weak the state economically,” he added.