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The war of words between the Telugu Desam Party and the Telangana Rashtra Samithi intensified on Wednesday with TRS president K Chandrasekhar Rao alleging that it was TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu who derailed the process of formation of Telangana state after the Centre had announced a positive decision over the issue.
"We will definitely find fault with Chandrababu Naidu because it was he who blocked the formation of separate Telangana after the Centre announced its decision on December 9," Rao told the media on Wednesday.
"It was Naidu who called Congress Members of Legislative Assembly from non-Telangana regions and made them submit resignations. It was because of the resignations, the situation turned complicated," he said.
Rao claimed that Naidu also sent SMSes to Congress and TDP MLAs on the night of December 9, after Union Home Minister P Chidambaram announced the Centre's decision to take steps for the formation of Telangana, to submit resignations.
The TDP and TRS have been engaged in a war of words since the last couple of weeks. TDP alleges that the TRS always spared Congress in its criticism and was targeting it instead over the separate statehood issue.
The latest provocation for Rao's attack was an open letter written by TDP MP and Naidu's brother-in-law N Harikrishna in which he attacked the TRS.
Alleging that it was Naidu who was responsible for hunger deaths, mass migrations from Mahabubnagar district and several other ills plaguing Telangana, Rao said he would continue to attack the TDP.
Describing TDP as a party that belonged to coastal Andhra, Rao claimed that the party never recognised leaders from Telangana.
The TDP would cease to exist if separate Telangana is formed. No Telangana leader with self-respect should continue being in the TDP, he said.
Ridiculing the TDP leaders' assertion that their party would become a national party if separate Telangana is formed, Rao asked what would be the TDP's stand on the issues of sharing assets between Telangana and non-Telangana regions.
Taking strong exception to Harikrishna's allegation that he has amassed huge wealth, the TRS president warned that he would file a defamation case against the TDP MP if he did not take back his allegation.
Political observers claim that the war of words was on as the TRS sees TDP as a major threat as the latter has a strong base in Telangana and intends to regain support in the region, where it lost badly in the recent by-elections.