A day after resignations began to pour in from Seemandhra leaders, the debate on the division of Andhra Pradesh is slowly but surely veering towards Union Territory status for Hyderabad.
Published: 03rd August 2013 07:42 AM | Last Updated: 03rd August 2013 09:30 AM
A day after resignations began to pour in from Seemandhra leaders, the debate on the division of Andhra Pradesh is slowly but surely veering towards Union Territory status for Hyderabad. It appears that after reconciling themselves to the fact that the Congress high command is firm on the division, the leaders have begun to focus attention on the next best alternative.
It was evident from statements made by Congress and TDP MPs who vied with each other to resign on Friday. For instance, six Congress MPs - K V P Ramachandra Rao, Lagadapati Rajagopal, Ananta Venkatarami Reddy, Vundavalli Arun Kumar, A Sai Pratap and G V Harsha Kumar - almost demanded UT status for Hyderabad the moment they resigned.
“Rayalaseema had sacrificed the capital for the sake of AP. Where can we go now, if we are asked to pack up from the city after 60 years? None of us is prepared to give up our right on Hyderabad,” asserted Venkatarami Reddy. Harsha Kumar pointed out Hyderabad was the only well-developed city in the 60-year-old Andhra Pradesh.
“It is indisputable Hyderabad has been transformed into a large metropolis due to the collective efforts of people of all three regions. So, the city should be made a UT for the sake of all the three regions and two new states should build their own capitals,” opined the Amalapuram MP.
When four Union ministers from Seemandhra - M M Pallam Raju, D Purandeswari, J D Seelam and Killi Krupa Rani - met AICC state affairs in-charge Digvijay Singh in Delhi in the afternoon, sources said, they placed their arguments specifically on Hyderabad. After the meeting, Krupa Rani disclosed they had sought UT status for Hyderabad. “Digvijay responded positively,” she added. PCC chief Botcha Satyanarayana echoed the same views, observing that in the 60 years, the state capital had emerged as an industrial hub and 70 per cent of employment opportunities in the entire state were generated from the city alone.
TDP MPs from Seemandhra, who put in their papers later in the day demanding a “fair deal” for their respective regions, too made a similar demand. Rajya Sabha member and NTR’s son N Harikrishna indirectly spoke along similar lines. YSRC leader Sharmila also said, “Hyderabad should either be made a UT or a permanent joint capital for both states. Ten years as joint capital is not sufficient. The Centre has not laid out clear safeguards for the protection of Seemandhra settlers in Hyderabad.” This rising demand has had ministers from the city, Danam Nagender and M Mukesh Goud, better known as Hyderabad brothers, worried. For, in such a scenario, they would be the first casualties. Nagender said they will not agree to make Hyderabad a UT. In New Delhi, Digvijay Singh said the Centre would lend a helping hand to Seemandhra to build a capital much larger than Hyderabad.
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