Telangana movement – the ‘grave’ blunder repeats?!

- D Vishnumohan Rao

It was one, then two and three and the number is growing. For what? Repeating the historical ‘grave’ mistake for yet another time? Successfully cheat the sentiments of the people in the region again?

Oh Gods! It is about the separate statehood status for the Telangana region that is playing up and down with the lives of people of the region time and again.

Telangana separatist movement’s canon had once again been erected and targeted by some self-designated leaders of the movement towards the individual political parties’ forts. Long before a single canon fired productively many parties’ forts started breaking up, reflecting the impact of the launching of the canon by the ‘leaders’.

Analysts put across a sorrow filled expression about the sufferings that populace of the region would face in the struggle. They state that once again their patience to soreness would be put to acid test. Several leaders from almost all the political parties, bid bye to their home in an attempt to line up their warriors to split the state of Andhra Pradesh. Forums and Smithies mushroomed; newer flags were hoisted on pillar to post.

As the saying goes, history reveals, these fora and samithies are going on their own diversified paths. Though everyone was targeting the ‘Telangana’ statehood as their goal, nothing common can be found among these leaders who invoked themselves as representatives of the people’s feelings for the separate state entity. One should remember the story of four sons and their unity. There are more than four leaders here, however a distinctively required unity among these people is lacking. When straws are independent they will certainly be unable to protect themselves, leave aside the target and the theme. If all the straws unite and intertwine into a rope form they can even hold a strong elephant intact.

Eventually, all these individual straws trying to bring a storm of Telangana movement in the state will never amalgamate. There are several reasons behind this. K Chandra Sekhara Rao, former deputy speaker from Telugu Desam Party floated Telangana Rashtra Samithi, Ala Narendra, sitting MP from Medak instituted Telangana Saadhana Samithi.

About 40 plus legislators of the Congress party formed into Telangana Legislators Forum staying intact with the party and its affairs, similar was the issue with some members of the Communists who joined hands in the name of Telangana Aikya Vedika. Everyone state and quote their ‘soul and sole’ aim as Telangana.

They will never join hands and strengthen the movement as all these individual leaders’ blood contains the elements of politics and power thirst as prime ingredient, of course everyone has the compassionate and consolidated superiority complex. Let us examine the systems and slogans of independent bodies separately.

Power – key issue for Telangana Rashtra Samithi

The Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) founded by former deputy speaker K Chandra Sekhara Rao advocated that they were demanding for separate Telangana state, which existed earlier. It also explained that formation of Telangana state would neither oppose any nor disturb any. The trend changed overnight as the local bodies approached in the state. TRS kindled regional feelings in the people. It named the ruling Telugu Desam Party responsible for the backwardness of the Telangana region. Telugu Desam government was spending all the funds of the state in the Andhra region and pushing the Telangana further way away from development, TRS criticised.

All the funds would be utilised, in case a separate state is formed, in the Telangana region itself, it claims. It also professed that TRS’ aim was to contest all the elections right from the grass root level of Panchayat to the Parliament. After winning all the elections, TRS wishes to pressurise the Central government for formation of separate Telangana state. Is this a practical approach? Let us agree for instance, that this is possible. Then how long would this process take to go practical? Many such other questions are bugging the people’s minds not only in the region, but also elsewhere.

People started branding the TRS, now onwards at least, as the party that is thinking of power where as its primitive aim of achieving the separate Telangana was cold stored. The slogan might be released again only when there is a need for.

Out of power, create a slogan – Congress culture

It is the culture and tradition of the Congress party men to raise a slogan whenever there is infighting or differences between coteries. It also is the custom for them to create a movement whenever they are away from power. As a matter of fact, the Congressmen raised the issue of Telangana statehood long ago. Eventually, the agitation was thrown into the dustbin, immediately after the fighting leaders were given a ‘right opportunity’ for their ‘effort’. Dr Marri Chenna Reddy’s role during the 1969 agitation for separate Telangana state will be remembered immediately when the name of this struggle is audible.

During the recent past, many Congress leaders demanded for a separate Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee. Among the present Congress legislators in the House, about 40 elected representatives cooked up a forum in the name and style of ‘Telangana Legislators Forum’ and declared that they would not bow out without achieving the statehood. The Forum represented the matter to the high command of the party at New Delhi. When there was a big ‘no’ heard from the high command these persons in the front and the personalities behind the screen calmed down.

It is analysed that the Forum members would patiently wait till the next general elections to the state assembly and cross-floors. Any way when the three decades history of the state Congress is scanned through, a naked truth surfaces. The Congress raised the slogans and shaped the movement whenever they were out of power. A general opinion is deeply spread in the common people of the Telangana region that the present Forum would also vanish and become a non-entity soon. In case the Forum is existing it would only strive for its own political mileage but not for the cause of the slogan it formulated, is the belief of the population.

Lotus loses faith for its double standards

The Lotus emblem of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is gradually losing its ground and faith in the people of Telangana region. During the last assembly elections it went to people with a slogan ‘You give ONE vote – We give you TWO states’. Poor voters believed this slogan and put their marks on the Lotus. The ruling Telugu Desam is against formation of Telangana. BJP, which needs TDP to continue in power at the Centre, is stuck in the slipping ground. Another situation also started deflating the image of the party. Earlier, the state unit of the party at its state executive meet resolved in affirmative to the separate Telangana. The national committee pulled the state unit’s legs mercilessly when it descended to ratify the resolution.

Leaders like A Narendra rejected to stay in tune with the national body’s decision. They quit the BJP and launched another Samithi, Telangana Saadhana Samithi. Though he is personally away from the party affairs, directly, ‘some’ influenced leaders from within the party are supporting him. The student subsidiary of the BJP, Akhila Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) declared directly it is for the separate state. Now people are trying to analyse whether their long cherished wish for the state status of Telangana is possible through individual persons like Narendra.

Can Aikya Vedika achieve any?

A group of leaders walked out of the revolutionary Communist parties and floated the Telangana Aikya Vedika, of course with the same slogan what other forums and samithies are for. It declared that it would fight for separate statehood and other developmental issues relating to the region. It had become a custom to leaders to designate themselves as the God sent for the formation of the Telangana state, form one or the other platform. It also became a part of the daily routine to the people in the region to watch them shrinking and evaporating away from the main line of their ‘declared’ goal.

The Aikya Vedika is going ahead with irrigation projects, railway lines, laying of highways, GO610 besides others.

Over all one common issue is being derived out of every slogan raiser about the Telangana development and statehood. That is, who ever forayed and shown selves on the screen was and is with a fixed frame outlay of selfish interest. Amid these circumstances, the intellectuals of the region cut a sorry figure about this ‘term’ of the movement too. They state that even this time people of the region would never get what they really wished for. It is the responsibility of the already formed, forming and to be formed Samithies, Forums and other such bodies to create confidence in the people, because only the creator can know what exactly is in the minds of the ‘fighters’.

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