TRS delays Telangana: Does Modi want Rao to dump Congress?

The Telangana Rashtra Samiti, it appears, has decided to prove the skeptics right. When the Congress Working Committee and subsequently the Union Cabinet approved bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh, the subdued reaction of the TRS, whose very inception is rooted in the Telangana statehood cause, raised eyebrows. Naturally, people declared that the TRS was a party for the process, not for the product. [caption id=“attachment_121683” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  TRS chief K Chandrashekhara Rao. PTI[/caption] Now, as the Government seems to be moving quickly on the state’s proposed bifurcation, the TRS is coming up with outlandish demands that seem to want further complication rather than closure on the issue. And the party once again stokes the feeling that TRS will throw a spanner in the Centre’s works, just for its own survival. It may be recalled that the TRS, even when it was formulating its plans for power generation once Telangana was formed, focused mostly on the region’s resources and its ability to become a power surplus state in a matter of 3-4 years. The KG Basin issue did not figure even in the party’s private discussions, according to party sources. Given this background, the TRS’s latest demand – for a slice of the resources from the KG Basin –  is seen as nothing but a political maneuver intended to upset the other parties rather than any serious policy plans. Informed sources reveal that the speed-breaker now is TRS president K Chandrasekhar Rao’s reluctance to yield to the Congress party. The TRS leader, reportedly, met the Congress high command last month in New Delhi where it was made clear to him that upon merger, KCR’s son K Taraka Rama Rao, one of the key leaders in the party, will get the Deputy CM post. His daughter Kavitha, also a prominent leader, heading Telangana Jagruti, a cultural outfit of the TRS, will get a Rajya Sabha berth. However, since KCR wants the CM’s post in the new state for himself and nothing less, the proposed merger is stalled for now, TRS sources say. So KCR has recently started talking of ‘Unconditional Telangana’, a new concept that is aimed at needling the Congress party and nothing else. Sources in the TRS let out that KCR has been getting calls from one of the country’s biggest corporate majors, at the behest of Narendra Modi. The Gujarat CM is  reportedly advising KCR to avoid a merger with the Congress and to instead contest independently. The phone calls allegedly involve a strong offer of financial support to the TRS for compensation and election expenditure. With the BJP not too keen on taking its friendship with the TDP to the hustings due to pressure from its Telangana cadre, it seems the TRS may also look to gain by staying away from the Congress. Another interesting development is the breaking of silence by MIM for the first time after the CWC announcement. Asaduddin Owaisi made it clear to the GoM that his party was against the division of the state but rooted for “Rayala Telangana” (including two districts of Rayalaseema – Anantapur and Kurnool – that have a significant Muslim vote bank) if the division cannot be avoided. However, it remains to be seen how the BJP would respond to Owaisi’s proposal. One of the reasons why the MIM opposed the division was its apprehension that the Sangh Pariwar would benefit from the formation of the new state and that it would emerge as a strong force in Telangana over a period of time. The BJP, meanwhile, is playing a behind-the-scenes political game as it gears up to even reverse its stance on supporting the Bill if the Congress proposes a Rayala Telangana, even as it seems to believe propping up KCR is a better idea than teaming up with a beleaguered Chandrababu Naidu. As the Group of Ministers is all set to conduct its third and most crucial meeting today, parties in Andhra Pradesh are getting the jitters. The crux of the issue now seems to be last-minute political gain rather than any consideration for the real issues that still dog the bifurcation proposal. And, ironically, as the Seemandhra movement enters the 100th day today, the despondent Seemandhra movement leaders seem as baffled as the people of Telangana about what’s happening in the state.