Srikrishna committee to meet political parties in March on Telangana

Justice Srikrishna Committee on Telangana today said it will start consultations with political parties and other stakeholders on the contentious statehood demand from the first week of March and hoped it would be able to find a solution agreeable to everyone.

The five-member committee, which held its second meeting here, refused to comment on demands from pro-Telangana groups that the Terms of Reference should be changed, saying there is a case pending regarding this in the Supreme Court.

"The meeting was good. We discussed a number of issues and we will make a quick trip to Hyderabad in the first week of March. We will hold preliminary discussions with important people and organisations concerned," Justice Srikrishna, a former Supreme Court Judge, told reporters after the meeting.

He said representations have been "pouring in" from various organisations and individuals and the committee has started analysing the contents.

Justice Srikrishna said the committee will hold wide-ranging consultations for the next two months and is hopeful that it can arrive at some kind of a solution agreeable to all.

Asked about the legal sanctity of the committee and why the government had not notified it yet, Srikrishna said, "I do not know about that. We are interested in working and the status can come later."