The government has finally zeroed in on three options on the contentious issue of status of Hyderabad after the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh. The options are to keep Hyderabad in Telangana without making it a Union Territory while the second option is to invoke Article 258 (A) of the Constitution where Hydearbad becomes the capital of Telangana but the latter voluntarily gives away certain functions to the Union government like police, public order. Article 258 (A) of the Constitution deals with “power of the states to entrust functions to the Union”. The third option is to declare Hyderabad a Union Territory and joint capital.
Home minister Sushilkumar Shinde will examine these options and only after final consultations at the highest level will the home ministry circulate a draft note to Central ministries for their observations before placing it before the Union Cabinet, according to sources.
On Thursday, Mr Shinde said that he did not get time to go through the draft note prepared by his ministry, which makes it unlikely for the Union Cabinet to discuss the Telangana issue on Friday. “The draft has come. But I did not get time to go through it. Most probably, I will see it tomorrow,” he said, when asked whether there had been any forward movement on the Telangana issue.
While the MHA will seek comments of all ministries, including the ministry of law, by circulating the draft note, the recommendations of the A.K. Antony Committee are also likely to be considered by the Cabinet. Sources said the committee hearing concerns of all stakeholders in the wake of the Congress Working Committee decision on a separate Telangana has not yet completed its deliberations as the defence minister is indisposed. Meanwhile, Mr Shinde is also expected to place the draft before Congress president Sonia Gandhi and the PM for “political clearance”.
“The whole exercise will take time. There is no chance that the note will be presented at tomorrow’s Cabinet meeting,” an MHA official said.