New Delhi, July 22 (ANI): Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad has said the government is concerned over the worsening state of affairs in Andhra Pradesh due to the Telangana agitation.
Speaking to mediapersons after meeting pro-Telangana leaders here on Thursday, Azad said the state of affairs in the state in the last few years is far from normal because of the contentious issue.
"My biggest worry is not only resignation or what will happen to Parliament session, my biggest worry is what will happen to the state of Andhra Pradesh because the atmosphere which has been created or which has developed over a period of time and it is not in the interest of the overall state," said Azad.
He also asked the leaders and representatives those who are demanding for a separate state to form a smaller group to address all the issues.
The pro-Telangana leaders had earlier refused to meet the minister to protest over his recent controversial remarks on the issue.
"At the end of the day, when this meeting was over, everyone said in one voice, they want nothing short of a separate Telangana and of course he was just getting the expression of all of us but he did not comment anything except saying that he will have a smaller group and continue the discussions once again tomorrow," said J. Geetha Reddy, Heavy Industries Minister.
The Telangana statehood demand gained momentum after over 100 MLAs and 15 MPs, cutting across party lines, submitted their resignations to respective presiding officers.
The four-decade-old demand for Telangana, which seeks to carve out of the economically less developed part of Andhra Pradesh, gathered momentum last year after the Congress-led UPA Government accepted the demand in principle.
Several protests and shutdowns had brought Andhra Pradesh to a near halt in 2009 and 2010, as pro-Telangana activists persisted with their demand. (ANI)
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Read More: Delhi | Andhra | Congress | Ghulam Nabi Azad
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