New Delhi:
Will a separate state of Telangana soon become a reality? The ruling Congress seems ready to bite the bullet on the contentious five-decade-old demand.
Congress General Secretary in-charge of Andhra Pradesh, Digvijaya Singh, yesterday said the consultation process is over and it's time to take a decision, which, sources say, may be taken before the monsoon session of the Parliament beginning August 5.
The Congress core group - Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Congress president Sonia Gandhi, senior ministers A K Antony, P Chidambaram, Sushil Kumar Shinde and Ghulam Nabi Azad along with Ms Gandhi's political advisor Ahmed Patel - met yesterday after discussions with Congress leaders from Andhra Pradesh including Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy, state Congress chief Botsa Satyanarayana and Deputy Chief Minister Damodar Rajnarsimha.
But the Congress has to keep in mind the dissent within the party, especially with many opposing the idea of a separate Telangana. There is a deep divide within the party with even Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy opposed to the demand.
A group of Congress leaders from Andhra Pradesh met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today. Three state legislators from the party have already resigned in support of a united Andhra.
Andhra Pradesh consists of three regions - Telangana, coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema. State capital Hyderabad with its robust IT-driven economy remains a sticking point. While Telangana wants to claim the city as its capital, leaders from the other two regions say they cannot afford to lose the employment and investment opportunities in the city.
As a compromise, the Centre is reportedly in favour of making Hyderabad a shared capital between the new and old state for the next five or 10 years.
Andhra Pradesh has 42 Lok Sabha seats. The Centre reportedly wants to move two districts from Rayalaseema, considered Jagan Mohan Reddy's stronghold, to Telangana.