Praja Rajyam chief Chiranjeevi will announce his party’s support to the separate Telangana state movement in a fortnight. Sources close to the actor-turned-politician said he would make the announcement during the second round of his ongoing Praja Ankita Yatra in Telangana districts later this month. Chiranjeevi, after interacting with party leaders from coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema areas, dropped sufficient hints about the party’s stand on the contentious issue.

The party leadership had come under pressure after the Telugu Desam came out in support of statehood for Telangana last week. The TD move was meant to win over the Telangana Rashtra Samiti which, it hopes, will be a crucial poll ally. Both the TRS and the Nava Telangana Praja Party of Mr T. Devender Goud, a former Telugu Desam leader, have dropped enough hints that they would prefer to sail with the PR if it comes out in clear support of statehood.

"Chiranjeevi wanted to announce the party stand when tours Khammam and Nalgonda districts from October 25. By that time we are expecting more clarity on the alliance between TRS and TD," said a senior PR leader. The party think-tank has been asked to finalise the vocabulary to express its support to the separate state movement in a way that would not hurt the sentiments of its followers in the Andhra and Rayalaseema areas.

Deliberations are going on in the party on whether it is enough to announce that the PR would not come in the way of the formation of Telangana state or if a more lucid statement has to be made in support of statehood Sources close to Chiranjeevi said that he had himself made it clear to senior party leaders that he would not like to beat around the bush on the sensitive issue. "After talking to him it was clear that our statement on Telangana would more lucid than any other party," said a former minister who joined the PR recently.