Union Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad on Wednesday expressed hope the Andhra Pradesh legislative Assembly will send its decision on draft Telangana bill before the timeframe set by the President for the process to be carried forward by the Centre subsequently.
Andhra Pradesh Civil Supplies Minister D Sridhar Babu resigned from the Cabinet on Thursday night protesting the divesting of legislative affairs portfolio that he had been holding for over three years now.
The rebellion against the Congress in Andhra Pradesh is out in the open. Last week, Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy openly called Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress president Sonia Gandhi deaf and dumb, and on Monday, six members of Parliament have decided to issue notice for a no-confidence motion.
Seven political and administrative reasons were given to convince the Congress leadership while proposing the creation of Rayal-Telangana. Vicky Nanjappa reports
Leaders of various parties from both sides of the political divide met President Pranab Mukherjee at the Raj Bhavan in Hyderabad on Monday night and put forth their arguments for and against the proposed bifurcation of the state.
Amid high drama, Telugu Desam Party Chief N Chandrababu was on Friday forcibly evicted from Andhra Pradesh Bhavan in New Delhi by the police and taken to a hospital on the fifth day of his indefinite fast against bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh.
The turbulent political scenario and overall chaos over the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh has hit several essential services across the state, but the medical sector has been the worst hit.
It is all out war between Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy and Deputy Chief Minister Damodar Rajanarasimha.
Amid the increasing pressure on the Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy from the Central government either to end the crisis arising out of the indefinite strike of government employees or face the axe, crucial talks were scheduled to take place between the chief minister and the leaders of the Andhra Prasdesh Non Gazetted Officers Association on Wednesday.
The beleaguered chief of Andhra Pradesh Police V Dinesh Reddy appears to be descending into deeper trouble. The Central Bureau of Investigation on Wednesday formally launched its probe into his alleged disproportionate assets following a Supreme Court order.
With the Congress leadership reportedly inching towards a favourable decision on Telangana statehood demand, a party member of Legislative Assembly and several YSR Congress legislators from non-Telangana regions on Thursday said they have "resigned" in support of united Andhra Pradesh.
President Pranab Mukherjee on Thursday gave seven more days to the Andhra Pradesh assembly till January 30 to discuss and debate the draft Telangana Bill in the House before returning it to the Centre.
An AK-47 rifle wielding man allegedly tried to abduct Aurobindo Pharma's Director K Nityananda Reddy from his car near a park and opened fire when Reddy and his brother resisted in the posh Banjara Hills on Wednesday morning.
As Andhra Pradesh braces to face a cyclone, political activity continues in the background. According to sources, two key leaders of the Congress -- Lagadapati Rajgopal and Rayapati Sambasiva Rao -- are in touch with YSR Congress chief Jagan Mohan Reddy with an intention of joining his party.
Andhra Pradesh, which has lately been a hotbed of activity following the decision on Telangana will continue to see more drama in the days to come. Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy appears to have made his peace with the decision to bifurcate the state, but is weighing his options heavily in order to launch a new party. Vicky Nanjappa reports.
The Andhra Pradesh Government has set up about 100 relief camps across the state and air-dropped food packets to people affected by heavy rains and floods even as the situation in East and West Godavari districts turned grim.
The Congress has almost decided to accept the demand for a separate state of Telangana but is still to work out the nitty-gritty of Andhra Pradesh's bifurcation.
However, the Telangana statehood was not even on the agenda of the assembly which reconvened on Thursday morning.
After post-mortem in the local government hospital, police confirmed the case was altered to Section 302 Indian Penal Code that relates to murder.
The thumping electoral victory the Congress had dreamt about is now a distant reality, says Vicky Nanjappa
Alleging that ruling Congress is "not serious" about bringing Lokpal Bill, the Bharatiya Janata Party has said that the United Progressive Alliance government could have brought the anti-graft legislation long ago as there was consensus over the issue.
Heavy rains triggered by northeast monsoon and a low pressure area over Bay of Bengal lashed several parts of Andhra Pradesh for the fourth consecutive day on Friday, prompting authorities to evacuate thousands of people from low-lying areas.
Even as the indefinite strike by the government employees in Seema-Andhra regions, opposing Telangana state completed 40 days with administration remaining completely paralysed, private educational institutions were also set to join the stir from Monday till month end.
Amid continuing protests over the creation of a separate Telangana state, Union ministers from the Seema-Andhra region met Congress President Sonia Gandhi in New Delhi and expressed the "sense of deprivation" prevailing in Andhra and Rayalseema regions.
By announcing Telangana, the Congress aims to kill two birds with one stone.
The strong Bharatiya Janata Party-Telugu Desam Party combine in Seema-Andhra could upset the calculations of the YSR Congress in the region, but the TDP's biggest problem is rebellion from within. Vicky Nanjappa reports
The Bharatiya Janata Party feels it has more to lose if it gets into an alliance with the Telugu Desam Party in Seema-Andhra. Vicky Nanjappa reports
YSR Congress chief Jagan Mohan Reddy is in New Delhi to protest the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh. He tells Rediff.com's Vicky Nanjappa that he is in New Delhi to show the strength of the Telugu people to Sonia Gandhi.
The Congress will be wiped out in the next elections, Rayapati Sambasiva Rao, one of the six MPs who was expelled by the Congress for opposing the creation of Telangana, tells Rediff.com's Vicky Nanjappa.
The Telangana Bill, which was rejected by the Andhra Pradesh assembly on January 30, will return to the Rashtrapati Bhavan on Monday along with six bundles containing 8,049 amendments.
The Group of Ministers on Telangana will meet in the first week of February to decide on the Centre's next course of action after Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy sought extension of the deadline for discussing and returning the statehood Bill.
There are indications that the BJP may not be as enthusiastic as it was on the Telangana issue now that the Congress has cleared the decks for the creation of the new state.
Lok Satta Party chief Jayaprakash Narayan talks to Rediff.com's Vicky Nanjappa on the Telangana turmoil, 'juvenile' Aam Aadmi Party and more.
Seeking to put a lid on speculation, Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde on Thursday said the bill for creation of the new state of Telangana, bifurcating Andhra Pradesh, will be tabled in the winter session of Parliament starting on December five.
The strike by power sector employees has crippled life, badly hitting hospitals and water supply in Andhra Pradesh.
Hyderabad, the city which is the bone of contention between Telangana and the rest of Andhra Pradesh in the proposed bifurcation of the state, belongs to all Indians and not to any region in particular, Union Minister S Jaipal Reddy has said.
The Centre on Thursday evening took the first significant step towards creation of a separate Telangana state from out of Andhra Pradesh and decided that Hyderabad will be the joint capital of the two states for 10 years.
The United Progressive Alliance coordination committee will meet on July 31 to finalise its stand on the vexed Telangana issue amid indications from Congress that carving out a separate state out of Andhra Pradesh is a foregone conclusion and that complexities involved in the process will be adequately addressed.
As the Congress and United Progressive Alliance government appear to be veering towards formation of a separate Telangana state, ministers and MPs from Andhra and Rayalaseema regions met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Saturday opposing any division of Andhra Pradesh.
According to sources, senior Congress leader Jaipal Reddy is a heading a major campaign to oust Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy, as a section of the party feels that the chief minister is single-handedly thwarting the formation of Telangana.
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