New Delhi:
The Congress' top three leaders - Sonia Gandhi, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Rahul Gandhi - will attend a series of meetings between 4 and 5.30 this evening at the PM"s 7 Race Course Road residence in Delhi. At the end of those deliberations, the ruling party is expected to announce a new Telangana state.
The top decision-making body of the Congress, its Working Committee, is expected to endorse the move to bifurcate Andhra Pradesh and Mrs Gandhi and the Prime Minister will also meet with their allies who participate in the UPA government, to formally inform them of the road-map for India's 29th state.
Top leaders, across political parties, from Telangana as well as the two other regions of the state - Coastal Andhra and Rayalseema - are Delhi-bound. This includes most members of the Andhra Pradesh cabinet; Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy, who, sources said, is upset at the bifurcation move but has been persuaded not to resign in protest, left for the capital a while ago.
The decision to go ahead with a new Telangana state was taken by party president Sonia Gandhi a few days ago and the Congress has reportedly made it clear that it will not reconsider it. Digvijaya Singh, who is the Congress general secretary in-charge of Andhra Pradesh, admitted that it was "not an easy decision." He said everyone one has been heard on the issue and their views have been taken into account.
Congress leaders from Coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema have objected to statehood for Telangana, arguing that their voters would respond with retributive force. There have been some rallies and protests in these regions and central forces have been deployed to prevent trouble. Human Resource Development Minister Pallam Raju, leading the anti-Telangana faction within the Congress, has denied quitting over the issue.
Telangana's future is imbricated with the national elections, now just months away. Andhra Pradesh has 42 parliamentary constituencies. The Congress has calculated that creating a new state will deliver strong returns. But just in case, it's weighing how to graph the geography for maximum electoral ground.
Hyderabad, sources said, will not be designated a Union Territory. Instead, the city with its booming economy powered largely by the IT industry, will be a shared capital for Andhra Pradesh and the new Telangana state.
The government may seek to affix two districts from Rayalaseema to Telangana's existing 10 districts. This will ensure the new and old states have 20 parliamentary seats each, and that the stronghold of the Congress' political rival Jagan Mohan Reddy is divided across the new border.
THE PROCESS FOR FORMATION OF THE NEW STATEThe actual formation of the state is expected to be completed by early next year. The cabinet will share its plans with President Pranab Mukherjee and the Andhra Pradesh legislature will be asked for insights.
The PM will then set up a committee to negotiate consensus between the leaders from the three regions of the state for issues like how to share revenue and water. Both Houses of Parliament will have to then pass the resolution for the creation of a separate state.
The five-decade struggle for a Telangana state was forced onto the contemporary national agenda in 2009 by the Telangana Rashtra Samithi or TRS, headed by K Chandrasekhara Rao. He fasted for 10 days, triggering huge rallies of support.
In response, in December 2009, in a surprise announcement, the Centre said it was sanctioning statehood. But within days, the government backtracked as violent protests erupted in the other two regions-Coastal Andhra Pradesh and Rayalaseema.