Hyderabad,
Dec 26: Notwithstanding the high expectations that a section of
Congress leaders have, the all-party meeting convened by the central
government over the Telangana issue Dec 28 is not likely to achieve any
breakthrough in finding a solution to the contentious issue.
With
just two days to go for the much-awaited meet, three major parties in
Andhra Pradesh are yet to name their representatives, indicating their
dilemma in taking a clear stand on the issue.
The ruling
Congress, the main opposition Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and the YSR
Congress, which is emerging as a key force, remain divided along
regional lines.
With Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde
inviting two representatives from each party, all the three are under
pressure to send delegates from both Telangana and Seemandhra
(Rayalaseema and Andhra regions).
While their leaders from Telangana want statehood, their counterparts from Seemandhra are opposed to Andhra Pradesh's division.
Five other parties invited to the meet which have taken a clear stand on the issue have announced their representatives.
The
Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS), the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and
the Communist Party of India (CPI) want a Telangana state. The Communist
Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) and the Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen
(MIM) are opposed to the state's bifurcation.
Congress
leader Ghulam Nabi Azad, in-charge of party affairs in the state, has
dampened the spirits of Telangana leaders by stating that since Shinde
recently took over as the home minister, he convened the meeting to know
the views of the parties afresh.
Political observers say
if eliciting the opinion of the parties is the purpose of the meeting,
it will not achieve any breakthrough.
Since the divergent
views in the major parties are known and with no hopes of unanimity,
the meeting may end in a failure like the two previous ones held in 2010
and 2011.
Congress leaders from Telangana, including some MPs, had asked Shinde to invite only one representative from each party.
The
Congress is finding itself in a tight spot over the issue as there is
pressure both from within and outside to take a clear stand.
The TDP and the YSR Congress are in fact waiting for the ruling party to declare its stand.
The Congress is reluctant. "We will take a stand after hearing other parties," said state Congress chief Botsa Satyanarayana.
A section of Congress leaders are pessimistic about the outcome of the all-party meeting.
They
believe the central government is not inclined to carve out Telangana
state as this could trigger demands for smaller states in other parts of
the country.
The Congress leadership is keen to drag the
issue till the 2014 Lok Sabha election. Some of its leaders from
Telangana, however, have warned that the party may have to pay a heavy
price in the region.
With the TRS and pro-Telangana
groups threatening to crush parties which don't support the Telangana
demand, both the Congress and TDP face desertions in the region, made up
of 10 districts including Hyderabad.
The upcoming meeting
appears to be aimed at pacifying a section of its MPs from Telangana
who set Dec 9 as the deadline for an announcement on taking forward the
Telangana movement.
The Srikrishna committee report,
submitted in December 2010, is also gathering dust. The panel had mooted
six possible solutions to the issue.
Comments
0 Response to 'No breakthrough likely at all-party meet on T '
Post a Comment