Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi on Friday condemned the move of 12 Congress MLAs merging with the ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) and alleged that this was possible due to money power.

Addressing a media briefing, Singhvi told ANI: "A political policy has been followed in Telangana since last one year -- direct purchase. It is an unfortunate context but if there's such commercialization, it is the negative aspect of it."

"All that happened in Telangana was possible due to money power. We condemn it but it is the reality of the new pattern brought in by the ruling party and the Chief Minister there," said Singhvi.

Earlier in the day, 12 of Congress MLAs met Speaker Pocharam Srinivas Reddy and sought the merger of the group with the ruling TRS.

The MLAs met the Speaker at his residence and submitted a memorandum claiming that the decision to merge with the TRS was taken at a meeting of the Congress Legislature Party (CLP), a claim the state Congress president N Uttam Kumar Reddy rejected.

Reddy said the defectors cannot claim to have convened a Legislature Party meeting without his permission. "The Congress party will fight it democratically. We have been looking for the Assembly Speaker since morning. He is missing. You people help us in finding him," he said.

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