Two States will help Telugus: Nagam

Hyderabad, Jan 22 : Nagarkurnool MLA Dr Nagam Janardhan Reddy said that there was no harm in having two States for the Telugu speaking people.

Participating in the discussion on State Reorganisation Bill in the State Legislative Assembly on Wednesday, Nagam said that the two States would only ensure faster growth of Telugu speaking people living in all the three regions of Telangana, Rayalaseema and coastal Andhra. He alleged that the Telangana region has been facing continuous discrimination from the Andhra rulers. He said that the Seemandhra leaders even ignored the suicide committed by hundreds of youth for the statehood cause and did not even console their families. He accused Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy, TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu and YSRCP president Jagan Mohan Reddy of displaying open discrimination against Telangana region and its people.

Nagam asked as to why Assembly did not debate on the suicides of Telangana youth. However, he said that the same issue was raised by BJP leader Sushma Swaraj in the Parliament and appealed the youth not to commit suicides.

He criticised the Chief Minister for changing his stand on the issue and said that Kiran Kumar Reddy went back on his assurance that he would abide by the decision taken by the Congress High Command. Similarly, Naidu and Jagan too reversed their stand. He sought the cooperation of all three leaders in smooth division of Andhra Pradesh.

Nagam said that the several districts in the Telangana region suffered due to the discrimination of successive governments. He said Mahabubnagar district was converted into a desert after the merger of Telangana with Andhra State. He said that the Seemandhra rulers never honoured or implemented the agreements done with Telangana region at the time or after the merger.

The BJP MLA demanded that Hyderabad should be made the common capital only for a period of two years and not 10 years, as proposed in the draft Bill.

At the end of his speech, Nagam moved a resolution demanding compensation for the families of the Telangana martyrs who laid down their lives in 1969 and in the present movement. INN