Hyderabad, Sep 11 (IANS) A senior Andhra Pradesh minister Monday offered to quit and dared Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) chief K. Chandrasekhara Rao to resign from Lok Sabha and contest against him.

Accepting the challenge thrown by TRS president to all Congress legislators from Telangana region to resign and face fresh elections, Minister for Sports M. Satyanarayana Rao Monday said he was ready to quit provided Chandrasekhara Rao also resign from Lok Sabha and face him in the elections.

Satyanarayana Rao is the second minister who has accepted TRS challenge. Earlier, Minister for Information and Public Relations Mohammed Ali Shabbir had said he was ready to quit provided senior TRS leader A. Narendra also resign his Lok Sabha seat and contest against him.

Two days after KCR, as Chandrasekhara Rao is popularly known, launched mass agitation for separate Telangana with a mammoth public meeting, the ruling Congress party has launched a counter-attack.

"I am ready to quit. I dare him to resign and contest against me. Whoever loses should retire from politics," Satyanarayana Rao told newsmen.

The senior Congress leader claimed he had used his influence to seek KCR's release in a cheating case. The controversial minister also claimed the TRS chief had requested him to help when Maoists had given him death threats.

KCR and Narendra had resigned from union cabinet last month in protest against the delay by UPA in conceding their demand for separate statehood to Telangana region.

While addressing a public meeting at his tome town Siddipet in Karimnagar district on Friday, KCR had alleged Congress betrayed Telangana people after coming to power with the support of TRS and challenged the Congress legislators from the region to quit and seek fresh public mandate.

TRS had fought 2004 assembly and Lok Sabha elections in alliance with Congress. It became a partner in Congress-led government both in the centre and state. The party, which has five members in Lok Saha and 26 members in 294-member state assembly, left the coalition government in the state last year.