Hyderabad: Telangana IT minister K.T. Rama Rao on Sunday urged the Telangana Congress leaders to bring pressure on AICC president Sonia Gandhi to issue instruction to their Rajya Sabha members to defeat the controversial Polavaram Bill that will be debated in the House on Monday.
Addressing a media conference at Telangana Bhavan, the IT minister said, “We don’t want your (T Congress) lip-service over the issue. Congress can alone stall the Polavaram Bill tomorrow in Rajya Sabha as NDA does not have sufficient numbers to pass the Bill. If you are sincere, you must use your good offices with Sonia Gandhi and defeat the Bill.”
He said the Congress leaders’ making statements before the media against the Polavaram Bill is not enough. Instead they must act by stalling the NDA’s move in passing the Bill. He said the Congress has considerable strength in Rajya Sabha to be able to stall the Bill.
“If you don’t do that, it will be known by everyone that the Congress too surrendered to the Seemandhra leaders’ pressures and lobbying, so it is better for Ponnala Lakshmaiah, Jana Reddy and Srinivas to rush to Delhi and bring pressure on Sonia Gandhi,” Mr Rama Rao said.
He also said that TRS has only one member Dr K. Kesava Rao, who would insist on voting for the Bill tomorrow and it is up to the three Telangana TD members on whether they support the Polavaram Bill, keeping in mind their party’s interests or oppose it, keeping Telangana inhabitant’s interests in mind.
