A video showing TDP MPs allegedly mocking a colleague on hunger strike had gone viral on Thursday
A video showing a purported casual banter of a group of Telugu Desam Party lawmakers in Delhi about 'hunger-strike' had gone viral on social media on Thursday.
The MPs were seen chatting, in a mocking tone, about hunger-strike with one of them suggesting that he could sit on fast for a week as he wants to lose five kgs. The casual conversation allegedly seemed to mock a colleague who is at present on an indefinite hunger strike.
In the short video clip, which appears to be shot on a mobile phone, they were seen having tea in their party office and having the casual chat.
They were apparently discussing the ongoing indefinite hunger-strike by party colleague and Member of Parliament CM Ramesh, in Andhra Pradesh's Kadapa over the steel plant issue.
When contacted, M Srinivasa Rao, MP from Anakapalli, among those seen in the video, told news agency PTI over phone that it was just an informal meet of the MPs.
"We were just cracking some jokes," he said, but said he is now aware of any video.
On June 20, TDP lawmaker CM Ramesh had launched an indefinite hunger strike along with a state legislative council member demanding that the centre immediately establish an integrated steel plant in the district as per provisions of the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014.
The party's Rajya Sabha MP had written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on June 18, saying that he would be "constrained to undertake an indefinite fast" if immediate steps were not taken to set up the plant.
Mr Ramesh wrote the letter five days after the Centre, citing a Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL) feasibility report, told the Supreme Court that it was not "financially viable" to construct a steel plant at Kadapa.
As per Schedule 13 of the Reorganisation Act "SAIL shall, within six months from the appointed day, examine the feasibility of establishing an integrated steel plant in YSR (Kadapa) district of the successor state of Andhra Pradesh."
Union Steel Minister Chaudhary Birender Singh has reportedly said the Centre had never said it was against setting up of the steel plant.
BJP MLC Somu Veerraju said the TDP was trying to politicise the issue and maintained that the Centre was ready to set up the plant.
A formal announcement in this regard would be made soon, he added.
The proposed steel plant is emerging as another point of contention between the Centre and the TDP, which had in March pulled out of the NDA government over its refusal to grant special status to Andhra Pradesh.
Disclaimer: The video which was widely circulated on social media is attached below. The video is in Telugu. NDTV cannot verify the authenticity of the video embedded below: