Hyderabad:
Doctors have said Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) chief K Chandrashekhar Rao is in critical condition and needs solid food immediately. KCR has been on a fast over the demand for a separate Telangana state for the last 10 days.
He has continued his hunger strike despite a request from the Chief Minister K Rosaiah to end the fast.
The TRS chief's fast and the fast-paced developments over the last few days have the Congress government in Andhra struggling with growing pressure to push for a separate Telangana. The Chief Minister, K Rosaish, has said it's upto the Congress' central command in Delhi to decide the issue.
The Telangana issue raged in the Andhra Assembly on Tuesday, forcing the adjournment of the House for the day. The party leading the movement for a separate state, the Telangana Rashtra Samithi, wanted the Chief Minister to move a resolution on Telangana, so that parties could vote on the matter.
However, this is dangerous for the ruling Congress, because this could expose its own divisions on the issue. In the wake of the confusion and tension, the Assembly was adjourned.
Outside, the streets of Hyderabad remain tense. Osmania University professors have threatened to resign en masse unless the police is withdrawn from the campus. The government has placed the university under high security and is closely monitoring the situation. Students were lathi-charged here on Monday while protesting for the Telangana cause. Last week, they set several vehicles on fire.
TRS activists also camped outside Health Minister Nagendra's home. The health minister is against Hyderabad becoming a part of Telangana.
In Delhi, Congress president Sonia Gandhi met with senior ministers on Thursday night to discuss the Telangana issue. A party spokesperson said that the Congress' stand remains that it is in principle not opposed to a separate state as long as "there is a consensus" on the issue.
But the party may soon have to take a more decided stand. On the 10th of December, all groups supporting the Telagana cause have called a "Chalo Assembly" bandh where people have been asked to march to Hyderabad to protest outside the Assembly. There are growing fears that this demonstration will lead to violence on the streets.