Goud "declares" T state

Hyderabad, Nov. 2: Sticking to his warning, the Nava Telangana Party (NTP) chief, Mr T. Devender Goud, announced the "formation" of Telangana state on Sunday.
The NTP had set November 2 as the deadline for the formation of Telangana and also threatened the Centre that it would declare statehood on its own. Accordingly, the party organised a programme at Indira Park on Sunday where the freedom fighter and votary of separate Telangana, Mr Konda Lakshman Bapuji, hoisted the national flag and declared the formation of Telangana.
Later, Mr Goud addressed the gathering. "Henceforth, November 2 will a memorable day for the people of Telangana. Their dream of having a state has been fulfilled today," he said.
"From now on, the NTP would concentrate on the development of Telangana by providing social justice to all," he said.
Mr Goud also called upon the party cadre and the people of Telangana to strike off the name of "Andhra Pradesh" from all government offices and signboards across Telangana and replace it with "Telangana". He also told them to replace the registration numbers of vehicles from "AP" to "T" throughout the Telangana region.
Later, when Mr Goud along with some NTP leaders tried to proceed towards the state secretariat with plans to change its signboard, they were arrested and taken to Chikkadpally police station.
Tension prevailed at the police station where some NTP workers tried to paste Telangana sticker on the nameplate of the police station. The police, however, foiled their attempts. Following this, the activists staged a rasta roko and pelted stones at buses belonging to the Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation. The arrested NTP leaders were released later.