PM not keen on Rayala Telangana
New Delhi: Congress president Sonia Gandhi and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh differ on whether the new state being carved out of Andhra Pradesh should be Rayala Telangana or just Telangana.
While the UPA chairperson is keen on adding two Rayala Seema districts ' Kurnool and Anantapur ' to the 10 districts of Telangana, the PM is averse to any such moves as he fears opposition from the BJP.
The BJP, which is ready to support a Telangana Bill in Parliament, has not made it clear if it was ready to support a Rayala Telangana Bill. Sources say that Dr Singh has also pointed out that there was no specific demand for Rayala Telangana.
These differences surfaced at the core committee meeting held at the PM's Race Course Road residence on Friday night. Senior leaders such as Sushilkumar Shinde, P. Chidambaram, Ahmed Patel, Digvijaya Singh and Kamal Nath were present at the meeting, apart from the PM and the UPA chairperson.
The Congress leadership is planning to add the two Rayala Seema districts to Telangana to overcome the Seemandhra MLAs' possible opposition to the bifurcation when the resolution is sent to the Assembly.
At present, Telangana has 119 MLAs in the Assembly, while Seemandhra has 153 MLAs with voting rights. If Kurnool and Anantapur districts are clubbed with Telangana, then the tally will be equal between the two parts ' 147 MLAs and 21 MPs each.
The Congress leadership hopes that the Hyderabad factor will play a major role here, with MLAs from the Rayala Seema districts of Kurnool and Anantapur more than willing to join a state that will have Hyderabad as its capital.
Telangana and Seemandhra are supposed to share Hyderabad for the next 10 years, before Hyderabad goes to Telangana. Sources say that the Congress leadership thinks that an equal division of the votes will ensure that the Telangana resolution is passed in the Assembly.
Congress will now get the views of the BJP and parties like the Telangana Rashtra Samithi on the Rayala Telangana proposal.
A definite indication that the Congress leadership was seriously examining the Rayala Telangana proposal became available when Andhra Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Damodar Rajanarsimha was summoned by AICC general secretary Digvijaya Singh and asked to give his opinion on the matter. Damodar was too shocked to immediately respond.
"They (the high command) asked me whether it would be okay if Rayala Telangana was announced, but I said people are seeking only Telangana with 10 districts," Damodar told. As soon as the Deputy CM returned from Delhi on Saturday, he met other senior ministers from Telangana to share the high command's latest proposal.
Congress leaders in Telangana got wind of the Rayala Telangana plan when some top Intelligence Bureau officials called many of them and sought their feedback on the idea.
"None of us have asked for Rayala Telangana. What we have been asking for is only statehood for our region with 10 districts," Congress MLC Mohammad Ali Shabbir told this paper.
Though administrative grounds are cited as the reasons behind Rayala Telangana, curtailing the influence of YSR Congress leader Jagan Reddy is believed to be the actual reason.
If Rayala Telangana is carved out, then Jagan would be limited to his Kadapa district in Andhra, whereas his Kurnool and Anantapur strongholds will go to Telangana.
Unless stubborn resistance to it comes from Congress leaders and the BJP, the Congress may go for Rayala Telangana and the same may be included in the draft Bill that will be approved by the Cabinet on 3 December.
News Posted: 1 December, 2013
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