The Union Cabinet, which recently cleared the note on the formation of Telangana and paved the way for the creation of the new state, will do its best to ensure that the process is completed by December 9, when the chief minister of the state is likely to be sworn in.
Jagan Mohan Reddy, who has never clarified his stance on the Telangana issue, may have to reconsider his political agenda. On his return from Nizambad on Tuesday, he was greeted by pro-Telangana supporters, who waved black flags, pelted stones and burnt tyres to protest his visit. Members of the Joint Action Committee on Telangana told rediff.com that Jagan was not welcome in the region. The police, who were present in large numbers to protect Jagan's convoy, arrested 20.
'On the face of it, the Congress, which took the decision without even consulting its allies, does not have a road map. That is why it is unable to deal with the present explosive situation,' says Kalyani Shankar.
Amid pressure from various quarters for an early decision on the creation of a separate state of Telangana, the government on Saturday said more consultations with various parties are needed on the contentious statehood demand and the exercise would take "some time" to end. Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad and political secretary to Congress president Ahmed Patel discussed the situation in Telangana region in Andhra Pradesh.
The political buzz in Delhi Corridors of power is not good for the Congress, especially when the President of India elections are near.
'However, to establish a quid pro quo, one can potentially see several things, like whether they got any benefits from the party that they gave money to. That is something that people (of India) will gauge. But to finally establish that there was money paid as consideration, it would require an investigation, a proper investigation, to be able to come up with such conclusions.'
Bharatiya Janata Party's Prime Ministerial candidate Narendra Modi was in all praises for Telugu superstar turned politician Pawan Kalyan. Sharing the stage with him at a rally in Nizamabad, Modi said, "As long as there are people like Pawan, the Telugu spirit will never die."
Though the terms of reference of the committee to look into the creation of a Telangana state may come in the next few days, the Congress is worried about the 'political' price it may have to pay for moving too fast on the statehood issue.
KCR said despite 'bhaashanbaazi', industries are closing down, the nation's GDP is crashing and the rupee is falling drastically compared to the US dollar.
A day after 16 YSR Congress MLAs and one from Congress announced resignations in support of united Andhra Pradesh, two more ruling party legislators from non-Telangana regions today said they would also quit as the central leadership moves towards a decision on statehood.
Given the politics behind it all, one possibility is for binding the governor to act according to the decisions of the state government and clarifying his position vis a vis bills and resolutions passed by the state assembly -- or, re-enacted if returned, points out N Sathiya Moorthy.
Seeking a third straight term, Modi is not just looking to stamp his electoral dominance on India but also chasing history with another consecutive victory equalling first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru's record.
The United Progressive Alliance government at the Centre is for a consensus on demands for the creation of separate Telangana state and communications have been sent to all political parties, Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee said in Kolkata.
Addressing a public meeting after unveiling a 125 ft-tall statue of B R Ambedkar here, KCR said the BRS party was getting a tremendous response from Maharashtra and was expecting a similar reaction from West Bengal, Bihar, and Uttar Pradesh.
The text of the Home Minister P Chidambaram's opening remarks at the meeting where he released the Justice BN Srikrishna report on the Telangana issue
The BRS, the AAP said that they are boycotting the address to protest against the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre.
A meeting of political leaders from Rayala Seema region, held to discuss the stand to be taken before the Srikrishna Commission on the issue of bifurcation of the state, has sent ripples among the supporters of united Andhra Pradesh. Senior Congress leader and former minister J C Diwakar Reddy has shocked the leaders from coastal Andhra region by suggesting that Rayala Seema should be a part of Telangana rather than Andhra.
The five-state assembly elections are seen as a now-or-never, no-holds battle for the Congress, points out N Sathiya Moorthy.
Statements of five 'Angadiya' firm operators have also been recorded by the ED to establish the "money trail" of this alleged Rs 45 crore bribe amount.
BJP heavyweights Smriti Irani, Arjun Munda, Ajay Mishra Teni and Kailash Chaudhary were among the 13 Union ministers who tasted defeat in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, as stunning losses in three Hindi heartland states forced the BJP to rely on allies to form the government.
'The prime minister took a meeting recently and he asked for suggestions and ideas for a plan till 2047.'
With the date of 'Million March' of Telangana supporters fast approaching, political temperature continues to rise in Andhra Pradesh.
The counting of votes in Mizoram will take place on December 4, a day after it was originally scheduled, the Election Commission said on Friday.
No time-frame can be fixed for solving the complex issue of Telangana statehood as it requires political consensus, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhar Reddy said on Monday.The demand for carving out a separate state was under active consideration of the Congress high command, he said a day after the Telangana Rashtra Samithi, spearheading the statehood movement, received a huge setback in the by-elections.He said the Cong high command was trying to reach consensus.
"Mr Modi has utterly failed. It is clear by now that we (NDA) cannot deliver more than this (since 2014)," he said.
In a move bound to create a major political storm in Andhra Pradesh, the law ministry has given a go ahead the home ministry note on Telangana.
To thwart a revolt among Congress Members of Parliament from Telangana ahead of voting on the issue of Foreign Direct Investment in retail, the government has convened a meeting of political parties from Andhra Pradesh on December 28. Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde said that he has given an assurance to MPs from Telangana region who met him earlier in the day.
On one hand, South Indian states have been complaining about denial of a proportionate portion of the sharable funds from the Centre, based on population. On the other hand, they stand to lose Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha seats that again are based on population, points out N Sathiya Moorthy.
Close to half of the total 543 Lok Sabha seats are bracing for multi-cornered fight this time, making the contest way more interesting and intense than it was in the 2019 elections.
An all-party meeting on the Telangana issue in the near future appears unlikely with the Congress on Tuesday saying that such an exercise needs to be preceded by talks with the people of different regions of Andhra Pradesh and political parties.
Some names like 'Bharat Rashtriya Samiti', 'Ujwal Bharat Party' and 'Naya Bharat Party' were discussed for the new outfit.
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy on Monday warned that the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh will spawn a host of problems, including political instability, Naxal threat, terrorism and communal violence.
The BJP has often highlighted the global recognition of his leadership and India's enhanced stature at the international level in its political discourse, an issue which is likely to rise in salience following the G20 meeting.
Telangana and Rajasthan are the last states to go to the polls in the current round of assembly elections, which also covered Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Mizoram.
Speaking at a public meeting in Nanded of Maharashtra, he said within 10 days, the BRS' party vehicles will go to every village in all 288 assembly constituencies in Maharashtra to form farmers' committees.
'If we get 399 seats and you say we have not crossed 400, then it is your wisdom. But the '400 paar' slogan is based on calculation and considered opinion'
The grand old party is looking to retain power in Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh while seeking to come to power in the other three states going to polls -- Madhya Pradesh, Telangana and Mizoram.
Even as dark shadows of a fresh intense agitation were looming large over Telangana region, students of as many as eight universities across the region have come together to take forward the movement for Telangana. A meeting of the representatives of the student community from the 8 universities has decided to form a new Telangana Universities Students Joint Action Committee to intensify the stir with out depending on the political parties or the leaders.
The Congress has not found the answers to many niggling questions on Telangana, but the party has already chalked out a political game-plan in the new state, says a correspondent in Delhi
