Congress has always failed to deliver on Telangana, other promises: Rajnath Singh (I'view with Rajn

New Delhi, July 6 (ANI): Senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader Rajnath Singh on Wednesday accused the Congress party of always failing to deliver on its promises.

Speaking with ANI in an exclusive interview here, Singh said: "The Congress has made many promises of removing poverty. They have also promised to create a separate state of Telangana. They have always failed and betrayed the nation. It is their nature and charactersic. They have also betrayed the people on the issue of Telangana."

Singh's comments on the Telagana issue came as the Central Government reiterated on Wednesday that consultations were on and it hoped that the process would help it reach a final decision even as it ruled out suggestions of president's rule in Andhra Pradesh.

"The status as of today is consultation process is still continuing. No decision has been taken yet," Union Home Minister P Chidambaram told reporters here while delivering his ministry's assessment report for the month of June 2011, when he was asked about the demand for a separate Telangana state.

Chidambaram also ruled out suggestions of imposition of president's rule in Andhra Pradesh, where over 100 legislators have submitted their resignations to press for their demand for a separate Telengana state.

"We are not thinking of president's rule....We hope that the process of consultations will show us the path to reach a conclusion," Chidambaram said.

Expressing unhappiness over the spate of resignations by MLAs and MPs from the region, he said the Centre would engage them in discussions.

Chidambaram said that the Congress general secretary in-charge of party affairs in Andhra Pradesh, Ghulam Nabi Azad, is already in talks with party MLAs and MPs on the issue.

Chidambaram said there was an apprehension that law and order problems would arise as a result of a shutdown call.

The Telangana Political Joint Action Committee has called for the 48-hour shutdown to impress upon the Centre the immediate need to carve out a separate state of Telangana, which will be followed by a rail roko on July 8 and 9.

The BJP, however, maintains that the Congress has failed to live upto the expectations of the people of Telangana since making a promise to the people of that region in 2004 that a separate state would be created out of the existing state of Andhra Pradesh.

It has also recalled that since the formation of the Justice Sri Krishna Committee in December 2009 to look into the Telangana issue and make its recommendations, nothing has been done for the past 19 months. The committee has forwarded six recommendations for a possible resolution of the issue, which the government is still mulling over, the BJP claims. By Naveen Kapoor (ANI)