India’s national capital has a new set of fortune-seekers, whose life and fate hangs in the balance. They are not here seeking jobs or livelihood, but an identity as Andhraites.
Congress MPs from Seemandhra, a region in united Andhra Pradesh, have made Delhi their new home, since Congress Working Committee’s decision to bifurcate the state. The Seemandhra MPs are camping in Delhi, and haven’t returned to their constituencies since the Monsoon session of the Parliament ended on September 6. “We are facing the heat and anger of the people. What do we do now? We are not able to face the people in our constituencies,” an MP from Seemandhra, who is camping in Delhi, told The Sunday Standard.
Since December 2009, it was the Telangana MPs, who were in the habit of staying back in Delhi to lobby for a separate state. Under pressure, MPs from Telangana region did everything from knocking the doors of the Congress High Command, disturbing the proceedings of the Parliament to getting suspended for staging dharna. They spent several hours every day in meetings among themselves and shared breakfast, lunch and dinner together by hosting it on rotation basis. Finally fed up, two MPs Manda Jagannadham and G Vivek had quit. After July 30 CWC resolution on separate Telangana state, scene is the same, but actors have changed. Now it is the turn of Seemandhra MPs. Their meetings with Congress president Sonia Gandhi and Anthony Committee members did not yield results. With the Cabinet note on Telangana likely to come up for discussion in the meeting of the Union Cabinet on September 24, in a bid to make last minute efforts to pressurise high command, seven MPs—Lagadapati Rajagopal, Sai Pratap, Vundavalli Arun Kumar, SPY Reddy, Kanumuri Bapi Raju, Rayapati Sambasiva Rao and Anantha Venkatrami Reddy—sought appointment with Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar to get their resignations accepted. Anantha Venkatarami Reddy is also said to have made up his mind to quit the party. Sources said that the one page Cabinet note will suggest the long term strategy to bifurcate Andhra Pradesh. Home Minister Shinde on Saturday shared a copy of the note with Union Ministers Kavuri Sambasiva Rao and Pallam Raju.
With all hopes drying, wives of Seemandhra leaders also joined their husbands. Their delegation met President Pranab Mukherjee and sought his intervention. Some of them did visit their constituencies for a day or two, but they were mobbed and gheraoed by people asking them to go back.
Meanwhile, Telugu Desam Party president Chandrababu Naidu on Saturday led a delegation of party leaders to President Pranab Mukherjee seeking his intervention in resolving the dispute over the proposed bifurcation. Like Telangana MPs, Seemandhra leaders are also having several rounds of meetings every day to renew their strategy over breakfasts, lunches and dinners. Kavuri Sambasiva Rao and KVP Ramachander Rao have reportedly hosted the maximum dinners. The MPs disturbed almost the entire Monsoon session and got suspended twice.
Unlike Telangana MPs, most of the Seemandhra leaders have been loyal to the Gandhi family for a long a time. So, it has become difficult for them to go beyond a point. It was reflected in the difference of opinion on whether to stick to for a unified state or look for a solution on Hyderabad first.