HYDERABAD: The Telugu Desam Party Legislators Forum For United Andhra Pradesh today urged the Srikrishna Committee to take up the Tungabhadra dam as a case study before coming to any conclusion on bifurcation of the state.
A delegation of TDP leaders headed by Kalva Srinivasulu and P Keshav urged Justice BN Srikrishna to study the Tungabhadra dam issue and how water disputes arose between Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka.
The dispute over the Tungabhadra water sharing between Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka arose after some parts of the erstwhile Andhra state were merged with Karnataka in 1956. The Tungabhdra dam is situated in Bellary, a predominantly Teluguspeaking area, that went to Karnataka in states’ reorganisation. Today, Andhra Pradesh is receiving just 22 tmcft of water against its quota of 32 tmcft.
“Similar problems will arise between Andhra and Telangana if the present state is divided,’’ the TDP leaders said and strongly advocated United Andhra which only, they said, would ensure overall development of all the three regions.
They said a Telangana state had never existed in history and the so-called region was part of a larger Nizam state. Telangana or Trilanga Desam extended from Bhongir to Srikakulam, they said. By a PowerPoint presentation, the TDP leaders from Andhra also showed Srikrishna the map of the 15th century in support of their argument.
``When the first election was held in 1957, no candidate in Telangana contested on the Telangana issue. This dispels the misnomer that both Telangana and Andhra were merged by force.’’ Speaking to reporters later, Keshav claimed that justice Srikrishna remarked to them that theirs was a well-researched presentation. The TDP leaders highlighted some other points in the memorandum submitted to the committee earlier.
TDP MLC Nannapaneni Rajakumari presented pictures drawn by artistes showing how the people of the state were cutting the branches of a tree on which they were sitting.
Meanwhile, freedom fighters under the leadership of Telangana Freedom Fighters’ Forum chairman Konda Lakshman Bapuji also submitted a memorandum to the committee.
They said that the people of Telangana had completely lost their faith in Andhra leaders and rulers. Formation of Telangana was the only solution, they said.
Some cultural organisations from Telangana also presented their views to the committee.