As the countdown has reportedly begun for deciding the fate of Andhra Pradesh, the Congress high command is reportedly narrowing down its options.
Some Congress seniors from the state, who have been tracking the happenings at the AICC level on the T-front, say the party high command is considering two options. One is to carve out Rayala Telangana state by clubbing Anantapur and Kurnool districts with Telangana. The other option is to give statehood to Telangana region and make Hyderabad a Union territory and common capital of both states.
A former minister, close to Union minister S Jaipal Reddy, divulged that the AICC leadership is in favour of bifurcating the state by clubbing two districts of Rayalaseema with Andhra and two with Telangana so as to have equal Lok Sabha seats (21 each) in both states for the benefit of the Congress party in the ensuing general polls. “The AICC leadership feels this option will nullify the influence of YS Jagan Mohan Reddy as well as TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu in the state,” the minister said on Wednesday here.
The senior politico from Rayalaseema said Jaipal Reddy too is not averse to this proposal as Reddys will play a dominant role in Rayala Telangana state.
In case this proposal is opposed strongly either by Telangana or by Rayalaseema leaders, then the AICC leadership might opt for the second option of dividing the state into Telangana and Seemandhra (Coastal Andhra + Rayalaseema) states with Hyderabad as their joint capital, the leader said.
Road Maps Faxed
Meanwhile, the troika of the state Congress--chief minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy, his deputy C Damodara Rajanarasimha and PCC chief Botcha Satyanarayana-- have braced themselves for the crucial meeting of the Congress core committee, scheduled to take place on Friday in Delhi. They have prepared their road maps and faxed them to their Delhi bosses on Wednesday night.
According to sources, while explaining the pros and cons of for and against bifurcation of the state, chief minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy, in the road map prepared by him, has batted for announcing a huge financial package for Telangana in lieu of statehood.