Telugu Desam Telangana Forum today asserted that it was against any move to create a new state comprising Telangana and parts of Rayalaseema region of Andhra Pradesh. The TDP wing was reacting to the Congress’ reported move to create a “Rayala-Telangana” state comprising two districts of Rayalaseema and ten of Telangana. “We will not accept Rayala-Telangana. We only want an exclusive Telangana state, including Hyderabad,” Forum leaders and MLAs Motkupalli Narasimhulu and P Mahender Reddy said here.

The so-called Rayala-Telangana proposal was yet another deceitful ploy by the Congress to further delay creation of Telangana state, they alleged. “The Congress had been cheating people on Telangana issue for the past 60 years. The public opinion is clearly in favour of a separate state and it should be honoured.” There was no change in Telugu Desam’s stand on the statehood issue and it remained committed to what it gave in writing to the Pranab Mukherjee Committee, the leaders said.

The TDP leaders were reacting to speculation that the Congress would announce a decision on bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh soon after the July 19 Presidential elections. Talk is that a new state, comprising 10 districts of Telangana and Kurnool and Anantapur districts of Rayalaseema region, would be formed. According to reports, Chittoor and Kadapa, also part of Rayalaseema, will be merged with the nine coastal districts and they would collectively form a new Andhra state.

A large section of Congress leaders from Rayalaseema region are said to be supporting this idea. Majlis-e-Itehadul Muslimeen is also not averse to formation of Rayala-Telangana. Pro-Telangana groups, however, want only an exclusive Telangana state with Hyderabad as its capital.