Almost all the political parties in the state, especially leaders of the ruling Congress, are anxiously awaiting the moves of the party’s Central leadership on the reported changes in the state and a decision on the Telangana issue, even as Vice-Presidential polls approach. Though there is no official word from Central leaders about likely decisions after the Vice-Presidential polls are over, state leaders are convinced and have even publicly announced that some “drastic steps” both in the state Congress leadership as well as on the contentious Telangana issue, would be taken almost immediately after August 7.
Whatever stand the Congress takes on Telangana, it would have political ramifications for all parties in the state, the issue being a sensitive one. TRS president K. Chand-rasekhar Rao has said that his party will wait till August 20 — a 15-day ultimatum has been given to the Centre — for deciding on the T-issue, failing which he would launch a mass movement again. In a related development, Congress MPs from Telan-gana will meet on Monday in Delhi to chalk out a strategy to force the party high command to announce the formation of T-state.
The MPs will meet AICC general secretary Ghulam Nabi Azad to renew their demands on the issue. At a programme organised on Sunday in honour of the recently retired TNGO leader Swamy Goud, T-Congress MPs assured the TNGO that they would get a favourable decision on the issue after their Monday meeting. From Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy’s point of view, changes are necessary for affecting a Cabinet reshuffle.
There will be those who have to be dropped and others included to prepare the cabinet to face the 2014 general elections as only about a year and a half remains for the state Congress leadership to gear up for the challenges. There is also talk of changes in the political leadership in the state but everyone is clueless on what the high command has in mind. According to sources close to Union minister for Petroleum S. Jaipal Reddy, Congress president Sonia Gandhi has given an assurance that she will take up the AP issue sometime in August, immediately after Vice-Presidential polls.
There is a clear-cut division among ministers, each toeing their own lines to settle scores. As for the PCC, though it is almost a year since Botsa Satyanarayana took over the reins, there is no party executive committee in existence. Efforts to get a green signal from the party high command on a new executive has also not yielded any fruit, with Mr Satyanarayana returning empty-handed from Delhi each time.