Speaker meets Sonia, Shinde

Talks focus on T resolution New Delhi: Focus is on the resolution on Telangana to be moved in the Andhra Pradesh Assembly soon, during the meetings of Speaker Nadendla Manohar with Congress President Sonia Gandhi and Union Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde. In a related development, however, the Congress Working Committee (CWC) members are not forthcoming on the issue and are very cagey about their stand on Telangana, insisting that the authorized person to speak on the subject is AICC General Secretary in-charge of Andhra Pradesh Digvijay Singh. According to sources, the discussions Manohar had with Sonia Gandhi and Shinde centred on the resolution to be brought before the House. The Congress is gearing up to bring the resolution at the earliest, which is required under the procedure but is not, however, binding on the Centre. Telangana Congress leaders also stepped up their offensive by calling on Union Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, who has emerged as the key figure, who virtually brought a turnaround in the Congress stand on Telangana. From a party seen to be vacillating on Telangana, is now bracing for an early decision. Azad is being seen as the key figure in the entire exercise. Emboldened by the recent change in the party stand on Telangana, the party leaders met Azad and sought to step up their pressure on the Congress High Command. According to party sources, the CWC members are tightlipped as Sonia Gandhi and Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi are personally handling the issue. In the three categories of CWC, in the top notch of 22 members are the likes of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Rahul Gandhi and Azad, there is no one from Andhra Pradesh. In the second category of Permanent Invitees, Kavuri Sambasiva Rao was replaced, following his elevation as Union Textiles Minister, with Shinde. In the Special Invitees category, however, there is one representative from the State in G Sanjeeva Reddy, who, however, favours keeping the State united. Venkat Parsa