New Delhi:
Jaganmohan Reddy couldn't have picked a more public platform for sharing his stand on Telangana. In Parliament, the son of former chief minister YSR Reddy was seen standing with Opposition MPs as they shouted anti-Telangana slogans, against the government's decision to sanction a new Telangana state.
The reaction within his own party was immediate - Congress MPs from Telangana filed a formal complaint with A K Antony, the chairman of the party's disciplinary committee.
And suddenly, Jaganmohan took a brand-new stand. "I want everybody to be together. I am not for a separate Telangana, a separate Rayalseema or coastal Andhra," he said. That is in keeping with his father's philosophy. YSR had used the development mantra during the last elections to combat demands for a new state.
He also offered a puzzling explanation for why he was seen with Chandrababu Naidu's MPs in Parliament. "While I was sitting beside a MP from Telangana and when the MPs rose, I too got up. There was so much confusion. I was standing there and there was no way to exhibit that TDP was not the champion. Chandrababu Naidu is the culprit. He is the one who supported a resolution and changed track."
Whatever the explanation that Jagan may offer, the fact is that he's under pressure to project himself as the face of the Congress in Andhra. For the last day, it's the Vijayawada MP L Rajagopal who's been the rallying point for Congressmen revolting against the Telangana state. Rajagopal was stopped twice by the police on Monday from starting a hunger strike in favour of a "United Andhra", attracting significant attention.
Critics allege that there are business interests as well to be protected. In an interview to NDTV, K Chandrasekhar Rao, the man credited with winning the government's ok for a new Telangana state, said that anyone who's opposed to the new state has "Vested interest... who have their bit of investment or business or some benami lands in and around Hyderabad."