TRS rebuffs Congress, says not to merger

Ten days after parliament passed bill to carve out separate Telangana state, the TRS took the decision, dealing a big blow to Congress, which was hoping to reap political benefits in the region.

The TRS chief clarified that he had offered to merge the party with Congress if Telangana state is created without any conditions. "They have put so many conditions like Hyderabad will be common capital for 10 years, governor will have law and order powers in Hyderabad," he said.

He complained that Congress never took TRS on board while taking decisions and drafting Telangana bill.

"None of our demands including the demand for special status to Telangana were considered. Their attitude hurt us but we kept quiet so that they don't blame us for creating hurdles," he said.

He criticised the central government for issuing an ordinance to merge several villages of Khammam district in Seemandhra and said the TRS would challenge it in the Supreme Court.