TDP to boycott GoM meet on AP bifurcation

The Telugu Desam Party has decided to boycott the meeting called by the Union Group of Ministers in New Delhi on Wednesday to discuss Andhra Pradesh's bifurcation issue.

The Group of Ministers -- comprising Union Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde, Defence Minister A K Antony, Finance Minister P Chidambaram, among others -- invited eight political parties from Andhra Pradesh for individual meetings on Tuesday and Wednesday to present their views on the bifurcation issue.

"Our party has decided not to attend the meeting with the GoM. Our main demand is that the GoM engage all stakeholders, including the Joint Action Committees, from different regions of the state in talks on the issue and address all concerns," TDP senior leader Gali Muddukrishnama Naidu said in Hyderabad on Tuesday.

The Union Cabinet had earlier approved creation of a separate Telangana state out of Andhra Pradesh.

Telugu Desam president N Chandrababu Naidu held a meeting with party leaders from Seemaandhra and Telangana regions at his residence on Tuesday morning to take a final decision on whether or not to respond to the GoM's invitation and attend the meeting slated for Wednesday.

The majority view that emerged at the meeting was to boycott the meeting with the GoM and instead write another letter on the party's stand, sources said.

"We will sit again in the evening and decide on the letter and to whom it should be addressed," he said.

"We have already written a letter to the Prime Minister clarifying our party's stand on the bifurcation issue. We also want the Centre to address concerns of the people and ensure equal justice in the event of the division. But, there has been no response to our letter," the TDP deputy leader pointed out.

Muddukrishnama demanded that the GoM visit Andhra Pradesh and tour the different regions to know the people's views on the bifurcation issue.