Wednesday, December 16, 2009

Kishenji Supports Demands for Telangana, Gorkhaland states




Indian Express



Maoist leader Kishenji has said Hyderabad is an integral part of the Telangana region and the city should be made the capital of the new state when it comes into being.



“Hyderabad is a part of Telangana and will stay so. There is no question of disassociating Hyderabad from Telangana,” Kishenji, who hails from the region, which has a substantial Naxal presence, said over phone from an undisclosed location on Saturday evening.



Asked why there was so much controversy over Hyderabad, Kishenji said: “It is because of some retired and serving bureaucrats who own huge chunks of land in the Greater Hyderabad region.”



“Nearly 40,000 acres of land, a large portion of which have vineyards, are in the hands of some retired and present bureaucrats,” Kishenji said.



The Maoist leader expressed support for the creation of Telangana and accused the Congress of “depriving” people of the region of their legitimate rights by “backtracking” from its move to bifurcate Andhra Pradesh.

Yahoo India

Kolkata: A demand for autonomy for three tribal-dominated districts of West Midnapore, Bankura and Purulia in West Bengal was today made by a top Maoist leader, who also justified the Gorkhaland statehood issue. “We demand autonomy for the three districts on the lines of the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council,” Maoist leader Kishenji told PTI from an undisclosed location.

He alleged that the West Bengal government had denied the legitimate rights of the people of the districts. “We demand autonomy to protect the language, culture and religious beliefs of tribals.”

Asked if he meant statehood, he replied, “the people of the three districts are not yet prepared for statehood.” Queried if it was part of the demand for a ”greater Jharkhand”, Kishenji said, “That demand is no longer relevant.”

The scenario has changed. “Moreover the formation of Jharkhand has not solved any problem. Going forward with the ”greater Jharkhand” demand will not solve the problem of tribals,” he said.

Kisenji, however, supported the demand for Gorkhaland in Darjeeling stating that it was “legitimate”. “It is the oldest demand for a separate state. They should be allowed a separate state to focus on their development as the state government has neglected the tea and tourism industry there,” Kishenji claimed.

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