HYDERABAD, NOV. 27. The reaction to the United Progressive Alliance's decision to form a sub-committee on the Telangana issue was on expected lines with the Congress and the Telangana Rashtra Samithi hailing it while the Opposition Telugu Desam describing it as "a new drama enacted to buy time." The CPI(M) was critical.

The Telangana Regional Congress Coordination Committee convenor, G. Chinna Reddy, hailed the formation of sub-committee and said separate Telangana was now a matter of time. The TRCCC would meet on Monday to discuss the development.

TRS on cloud nine

There was jubilation in the TRS camp. Enthusiastic party workers burst crackers and cut cakes at the party headquarters here.

The Union Minister of State for Rural Development, A. Narendra, said the panel was conclusive evidence that the formation of the State was on the cards. The party MLA from Alair, K. Nagesh, hoped that the Communist parties would give up their opposition to Telangana at least now.

The Telugu Desam leader, N. Janardhan Reddy and others, saw in the move a new drama enacted by the Congress-TRS combine to buy time and keep the TRS chief, K. Chandrasekhara Rao, in good humour. "It is the result of pressure tactics adopted by Mr. Rao and the UPA yielded to it to keep him in good humour. He himself wanted to get respite. It also shows that Mr. Rao wants to cling to power for the next five years."

On the decision to allot prime land to the TRS for construction of party office, the TDP wanted the Government to ensure that the registration was done in the name of the party and not an individual. They said a letter would be addressed to the Government in this matter.

The TDP leaders again lashed out at the Chief Minister, Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy, for laying the foundation-stone for irrigation projects which were already under progress.

For the BJP leader, Bandaru Dattatreya, who spoke to presspersons in Anantapur, it was a strategy to "calm down Mr. Chandrasekhara Rao."

The sub-committee would not help in realising the goal of Telangana as its limited brief was to look into the merits of the demand. "It is like giving a chocolate to a crying boy. Chocolates and sweets do not fetch a separate State."

CPI(M) sceptical

The State CPI(M) secretary, B. V. Raghavulu, felt the panel was a ploy to deceive people so that the TRS continued in Government. "It is a committee of the UPA and the party had nothing to do with it.

The committee's deliberations are not binding on us. We continue to stand for the integrated State."