'Rosaiah is behaving like CM of Andhra region'

Even as the Central government was making serious and determined efforts to put an end to the crisis in Andhra Pradesh over the Telangana issue, mudslinging was continuing in the ruling Congress party.

Chief Minister K Rosaiah evoked angry reactions from the Telangana leaders of the party, including a minister, for his comments that the agitation for Telangana led to huge losses to the state and had put off the industrialists who wanted to set up their projects in the state.

The minister for information technology Komatireddy Venkat Reddy lashed out at the CM saying he was behaving like the 'Chief Minister of Andhra region.'

Referring to the remarks of the CM that investors were going away from the state because of the trouble, the IT minister said why the CM did not say the same thing when there was an agitation in coastal Andhra and Rayalseema regions in support of a united Andhra Pradesh.

The minister who hails from Nalgonda in Telangana also found fault with the CM for saying that the Naxalites had infiltrated into the Telangana movement.

Similar criticism has also come from Congress working committee member G Venkat Swamy and another senior leader K R Amos. "It is not proper for the CM to say that the industrialists and investors were going away because of Telangana agitation," Amos said.

Meanwhile, a senior minister from Rayalseema region has come forward to defend the CM. Terming IT minister's remarks against the CM as 'irresponsible,' the agriculture minister N Raghuveera Reddy said that there was nothing wrong if Rosiah had talked about the losses caused by the current agitation in the state.

"The chief minister is working impartially and treating all the 23 districts equally," he said.

Meanwhile, other Congress leaders from Andhra region have criticised the latest initiative of the Central government to hold talks with the political parties. Government whip in state assembly Shailajanath said that at a time when the situation in the state was charged, any talks would not be able to yield results. Instead, he said, that the issue should be discussed first in the state Congress legislature party meeting. He said he will meet the chief minister to seek CLP meeting.

The Congress MP from Vijayawada Lagdapati Rajagopal has also alleged that some leaders were hatching a conspiracy to break the state into pieces. He said former CM YS Rajasekhara Reddy had led the Congress to victory in the elections on the basis of an integrated Andhra Pradesh. He said he was amazed that now the same Congress was taking the slogans of the parties who were defeated in the last elections.