Hyderabad, Jan 16 (IANS) Giving a new twist to the Telangana issue, two Andhra Pradesh ministers from Hyderabad Wednesday demanded separate statehood to Greater Hyderabad.
State Labour Minister Danam Nagender and Backward Classes Welfare Minister Mukesh Goud in the N. Kiran Kumar Reddy led Congress government told reporters that the central government should also take their views into consideration.
Opposing the idea of union territory status to Greater Hyderabad, Nagender said they would not agree to any such setup.
"We don't want a rule, where there will be no public representatives. We want Greater Hyderabad to be made a separate state; or if the centre takes any decision on Telangana and Hyderabad, it should take our views into consideration," said Nagender, who is also president of Congress party's Greater Hyderabad unit.
Goud said Hyderabad had a special character as people from all regions of the state were settled here for decades. "We have conveyed to the centre that we are not being consulted while taking a decision on Telangana issue," he added.
The two ministers clarified that they had nothing to do with either those demanding separate statehood to Telangana or those opposing division of the state.
"We will not be part of any meeting," he said, referring to the meeting called here Thursday by leaders of Seemandhra (Rayalaseema and Andhra regions).
Hyderabad is one of the 10 districts of Telangana, the region which was merged with then Andhra State in 1956 to form Andhra Pradesh.
Pro-Telangana groups are demanding Telangana state with Hyderabad as its capital. The centre, which is likely to take a decision on the issue by month-end, is reportedly considering a proposal to make Hyderabad a joint capital of two states for 10 years.
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