New Delhi, December 17: Adopting a go-slow approach to defuse the crisis in Andhra Pradesh over formation of a separate Telangana state, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Wednesday told non- Telangana MPs that an amicable solution would be worked out keeping their sentiments mind, but not before the protests subside.
He sought the cooperation of the MPs to restore normalcy in areas which have been witnessing protests for unified AP. “We agree with the PM that it is our duty to stop the protests…. But we conveyed to him that we also need some clarification (from the Centre) to convince our people,’’ Rajya Sabha member J D Seelam said.
Senior Congress leaders indicated that the government may issue a clarification — “not rebuttal’’ — on Union Home Minister P Chidambaram’s “controversial statement’’. The government is unlikely to take such a step before Parliament session ends on December 21.
More than the government, the Congress is in a Catch-22 situation. If it persists with the Telangana plank, it will lose heavily in the other two regions, especially Rayalaseema. If it doesn’t, the Telangana seats will have to be forgotten. “We will be in no position to ask for votes there,’’ Congress MP Madhu Goud Yakshi said.
–Agencies–