We have not joined NDA, says TRS

The Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) today asserted that it did not join the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) at the Centre and continued to be part of the TDP-led Grand Alliance in Andhra Pradesh.

"Our only objective is to secure statehood for Telangana. Since the NDA stood a chance of coming to power at the Centre, we have extended support to it only to achieve Telangana state," senior TRS leaders T Harish Rao and Nayini Narasimha Reddy told reporters here today.

Maintaining that they had not entered into any agreement for joining the Grand Alliance in the state, the TRS leaders, however, said they continued to be part of the four-party grouping. "We have nowhere deviated from our position. Our support to the NDA is only issue-based," Harish Rao and Narasimha Reddy added.

"Whoever forms the next government in the state, we want them to first pass a resolution in the Assembly seeking statehood for Telangana. We will extend our support to only such party," they said.

They rebutted claims that the TRS was resorting to such blackmailing tactics only to grab ministerial berths in the next government. "Ours is a one-point programme-achieving Telangana state. We are not interested in any posts or positions," they asserted.