As the deadline fixed by YSR Telangana Party headed by Andhra Pradesh chief minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy’s sister Y S Sharmila for the merger of her party with the Congress ended on Saturday evening, there is no still no clarity over what she is going to do next.
According to sources, the Congress high command reached out to her by sending a senior official to Hyderabad on Friday evening to hold talks with her to discuss the merger proposal.
It is learnt Sharmila had reiterated her decision to confine herself to Telangana and not to move to Andhra Pradesh.
She, however, told the party leadership that she would not contest the assembly elections in Telangana so as to avoid embarrassment to the Telangana Congress leaders during the assembly elections.
If the Congress comes to power in the state, Sharmila would play an active role in the party and would contest the Lok Sabha elections to be held in April or May. The high command has reportedly agreed to her proposal.
In all probability, the talks would reach a final stage by next week and a statement on the merger of YSRTP with the Congress is expected by October 5.
“Everything is going smoothly and there are positive signals from both the sides,” sources added.
It may be recalled that Sharmila held a meeting with senior functionaries and the cadres of the party on Monday and discussed a variety of aspects in connection with the upcoming Telangana state assembly elections.
The YSRTP chief stated that any possibility of working with the Congress will be finalised by September 30, as the notification timing is fast nearing. If no alliance fructifies, she told her party colleagues that the YSRTP will contest in all 119 constituencies in the upcoming assembly elections, she told the party leaders.
Sharmila also stated that she would tour across all assembly segments starting the second week of October. During the Monday’s meeting, she assured the cadres that their efforts will be recognised and their interests will be protected.
