JAC determined to hold Telangana march

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Amid fears that its proposed rally on September 30 might turn violent, the Telangana Joint Action Committee (JAC) on Thursday said it would go ahead with the 'Telangana March' here.

"I would like to reiterate that the JAC is going to conduct the ‘march’ on 30th. We have decided to continue with this agitation because we have no other option. We tried a number of ways to achieve our demand," M. Kodandaram, Convener, Telangana Joint Action Committee (JAC), told a group of reporters here.

As fears were expressed that the pro-Telangana ‘march’ scheduled to be organised at the Tank Bund on the banks of the Hussain Sagar lake might see outbreak of violence, the Andhra Pradesh Police have so far denied permission to the JAC for the event as the massive immersion of Ganesh idols is set coincide with it.

Also, Hyderabad is scheduled to host the prestigious global convention on biodiversity from October 1-19 which is expected to be attended by delegates from about 190 countries and also some Heads of States.

Government sources also pointed out that a similar ‘march’ held at the same Tank Bund last year saw a number of statues of renowned Telugu personalities being vandalized.

When pointed out that any vested interests might try to create trouble at the ‘march’ though the JAC wanted it to be peaceful, Kodandaram asserted that the pro-Telangana agitation has by and large been peaceful.

He said the JAC can convince the people to maintain peace during the ‘march’ if the government gives the permission.

"It never happened. All organizations participating in it appealed to people to maintain calm and peace. If they give us permission and allow us to conduct it in own way, then obviously we can maintain peace. We can definitely talk to the people, convince them, persuade them to maintain peace. People of Telangana are convinced by and large that they can benefit if they maintain peace. Over the last three years, many agitations have taken place and it has always been peaceful,” he said.

He said the JAC cannot take responsibility if its leaders are arrested and people are not allowed to conduct the march.

The JAC Convener alleged that the Union Government has failed to take concrete steps to address the Telangana issue though the stir was called off last year on an appeal from top government leaders to maintain peace.

"Chandrasekhar Rao was in Delhi, talking to the Congress leaders and was even willing to merge with the Congress party, lose his own political identity so that the Congress can derive the political benefits. Yet the Congress has not utilized the dialogue process effectively. In fact, at some point of time, they scuttled the entire dialogue process," he said.

Asked if the rally would be a one-day event, he said, "We will decide at the end of the day."

Replying to a query, he said they cannot put a figure on the number of people attending the ‘march’.

Asked what is expected to be the final outcome of the rally, he said they wanted to convey the point that the people of Telangana are united and to put pressure on the Centre and also the leaders of ruling Congress leaders from the region.

The argument of lack of consensus over formation of separate state is not correct as consensus is required only within Telangana.

The JAC comprises TRS, BJP and several people’s organizations like Andhra Pradesh government employees from Telangana. The proposed ‘march’ is supported by BJP, TRS, CPI, a few other smaller parties and also the Telangana Congress MPs, he said.

Referring to the government argument that the brand image of Hyderabad would suffer if any violence takes place, the JAC convener claimed that the image of the city has been damaged due to factors like acute power shortage and water crisis and bad governance.

Asked if there will be a surprise element during the rally, he said they planned to gather at the Tank Bund but a 'Plan B' may be thought of if that was not allowed.

Meanwhile, the State Ministers from Telangana, who are under pressure from statehood supporters to secure permission for the 'march', held a meeting to discuss the developments. The Telangana JAC leaders earlier met Home Minister P. Sabita Reddy and appealed to her to accord permission to the event.

Talking to reporters after the meeting, Panchayat Raj Minister K Jana Reddy said they will discuss the matter with Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy after his return from a visit to Krishna district. The MLAs of TRS and others met the Home Minister and other top officials to seek permission for the 'march'.