HYDERABAD: The ruling Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) preferred to maintain silence over the letter written by Trinamool Congress chief and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to the Chief Ministers of non-BJP states, calling for a united fight against the ‘oppressive rule’ of the BJP-led government at the Centre. None of the top party leaders in the TRS reacted on this issue.
Party sources said Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao did not receive any letter from Mamata in this regard so far and that he would take a call on the future course of action after receiving the letter.
However, the Chief Minister planned a sudden trip to Delhi on Wednesday morning which was subsequently cancelled by evening. His sudden Delhi trip proposal triggered speculations that it was aimed to meet non-BJP Chief Ministers to discuss holding a meeting of non-BJP parties as sought by Mamata.
The Chief Minister had repeatedly announced in recent months holding a non-BJP parties conclave either in Delhi or in Hyderabad to launch a united fight against the BJP-led government at the Centre. Against this backdrop, Mamata writing a letter to Chief Ministers of all non-BJP states on Tuesday and Chandrashekar Rao planning to visit Delhi a day after on Wednesday heated up the political atmosphere in the state.
Meanwhile, the TRS members on Wednesday staged a walkout from both the Houses of the Parliament demanding the Centre conduct a caste-based census. As soon as the session commenced, the TRS MPs moved an adjournment motion in the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha seeking discussion on the caste-based census. The adjournment motions were, however, rejected by the Speaker and Chairman of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha respectively.
Registering protest over rejecting adjournment motions, the TRS MPs staged a walkout from both the Houses raising slogans demanding caste-based census.
Later, speaking to media personnel, TRS MPs lashed out at the BJP-led government at the Centre for ignoring caste-based census despite there is a strong demand from several political parties and caste organisations across the country in this regard. They said caste-based census was conducted in the country 92 years ago and since then none of the subsequent governments took measures to conduct caste-based census.
TRS floor leader in Lok Sabha Nama Nageswara Rao said with no exact figures on caste-based population in the country, it became difficult for the governments at the Centre and the states to devise suitable and effective schemes for the welfare and development of vulnerable sections and also to enhance reservations for these sections in proportionate to their population.
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