Ahmedabad, March 3 (IANS) Ravindra Naik, a former Andhra Pradesh MP, is in Gujarat to garner support for the formation of a new political party to spearhead the separate Telangana movement. He plans to meet state Chief Minister Narendra Modi.

The former Warangal MP, who arrived in Ahmedabad Tuesday, said he plans to seek the support of all for a mass movement for the formation of a Telangana state. "We plan to announce the formation of a new political party to spearhead our movement on March 16 which is our new year," he said.

The former MP is a member of the Telangana Rastra Samiti, the party heading the agitation for a separate state, but is at loggerheads with TRS chief K. Chandrasekhar.

Naik held a meeting of people from the Telangana region settled in Ahmedabad before he visited the Sabarmati ashram to pay his respects to Mahatma Gandhi. "I want to commence my movement for this cause from here," he added.

The politician who claims to have the backing of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) head office in Delhi is keen to meet the Gujarat chief minister. While on his way to Delhi, he also plans to meet other chief ministers in a bid to convince them of the legitimacy of the Telangana cause.

Pro Telangana activists have been demanding that the central government immediately initiate the process for granting separate statehood to the region.