Zeenews Bureau
Hyderabad: Apparently, in view of the continuing unrest in the state and the en masse resignation by legislators, the Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) sounded conciliatory on Saturday and announced that it was willing to wait for the creation of a separate Telangana state carved out of Andhra Pradesh.
Clearing the air on their current position, especially in view of the stiff opposition by people and politicians from Rayalaseema and Coastal Andhra, senior TRS leader KT Rama Rao said, “We are willing to wait a little longer for the resolution to be passed in the Assembly.”
Observing that adverse reactions are to be expected when new states are formed, Rao said, “We understand the Congress’ dilemma; we are thankful to UPA for its commitment to create Telangana.”
Importantly, he also pledged that there will be no more protest in Telangana over the issue.
However, the sudden mild tenor from the TRS is also being seen as a tactical move by the party to let the tempers cool down as there has been a massive build up of opinion against Telangana in other parts of the state.
This approach was evident even on the day when party chief K Chandrashekhar Rao was discharged from the hospital. He, instead of going back home in a rally, decided to drive down without any fanfare. No speeches… nothing for now.
What’s also forcing the TRS to adopt a wait-and-watch approach is the apparent cold shoulder given by the Centre. Post the midnight announcement by P Chidambaram, the government has made it absolutely clear that it won’t hurry into the creation of Telangana.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, himself, has made it clear that the government won’t take any hasty decision on the issue and would look forward to building a consensus.
The fact remains: main reason for the ‘go slow’ approach is the near total mutiny by Congress MPs and MLAs from Rayalaseema and Coastal Andhra against the decision to split the state.
The Congress is also wary of taking a call on Hyderabad – the biggest bone of contention in the entire issue. Geographically, Cyberabad has to be in Telangana but the problem is that 80% of businesses in the city of Nizams are controlled by people from Coastal Andhra.
First Published: Saturday, December 12, 2009, 14:38