Blow to Congress in Andhra Pradesh as 3 MPs quit to join TRS

Mangalore Today/CNN-IBN

New Delhi, May 30: In a major jolt to the Congress in Andhra Pradesh, Keshav Rao, the party’s most prominent face in Telangana, threatened to quit along with two other MPs, Dr M Jagannath and Dr Gaddam Vivekanand.

 

Speaking to reporters, Keshav Rao said that he had issued an ultimatum to the Congress and that ten other MPs were also ready to quit along with him. Keshav Rao said he will formally announce his decision on June 2.

Jagannath and Vivekanand said, "We have decided to quit Congress and join the movement for Telangana under the TRS. We shall hand over the resignation formally to the party soon."

Keshav Rao had warned the Congress earlier that unless there would be a decision on a separate state for Telangana, he would cross party lines.

TRS leader KT Rama Rao welcomed the move, saying, "They have done various things that could be done for the party. They have done every efforts to bring out the issue of Telangana. Both of them, along with Keshav Rao, decided to join Telangana Rashtra Samithi. We will definitely achieve Telangana. We will communicate more after the meeting."

The Congress said it will speak to the MPs.

The BJP, however, pulled up the Congress, saying, the resignation was the result of the Congress’s "habit of cheating the public and deceiving the nation".