First, it was the groups that wanted a state of Telagana who seized the streets, setting buses on fire, their arm-twisting landing them the biggest prize of all: a new state, or the promise of one, anyway, from the Union government. Now, it is the other parts of Andhra that are turning out in hundreds, forcing trains to a stop on tracks that run through parts of Rayalaseema, defiantly saying they will not allow a bifurcation of their home, or the transfer of Hyderabad to Telangana.

As the government in Delhi promises to reconsider the issue, the possible segregation has already done considerable damage, forcing Andhra to take sides in ways that shout danger ahead.

At the Andhra Pradesh High Court on Friday, lawyers for and against a separate Telangana fought each other in a mini-riot.

Last week, business establishments belonging to those from outside the Telangana region were stoned in Hyderabad.

L Ravichander, a civil rights activist, worries that the identity crisis for Andhra is being fought now much more on the streets, than in the Assembly, where, for the third day in a row, the House was adjourned over the issue of Telangana. "I feel very tragic that you are not a part of me. It is another thing to say I give you the political space to be where you are and decide whether you want this region or that region but to say because you don't belong to my region, you have to get the hell out of here would be tragic."

It is imperative, analysts say, that Telangana supporters, led by K Chandrasekhar Rao, lie low, abstaining from victory marches over the greenlight for the new state.  But if the government does indeed indicate that it's likely to reconsider its decision for Telangana, the response from Rao and others could be what the government  - and the people - fear most. A new and vicious cycle of violence.