Andhra Pradesh was under President’s rule once in the past when former Prime Minister P V Narasimha Rao was holding the reigns of the state around mid-70s and the reason was the demand for separate Andhra Pradesh.
Ironically, it is on the same grounds that the Centre is planning to invoke Article 365 of the Constitution as it is under the firm belief that there will be law and order problem once a decision on Telangana is announced. If reports are to be believed, this was one of the reasons why the Union Home Ministry has urgently summoned Chief Secretary Minnie Mathew, Director General of Police V Dinesh Reddy and others for discussions.
According to sources, the Congress high command has lost all hopes of the party winning the next Assembly elections as almost all surveys have been predicting that the YSR Congress led by Kadapa MP Y S Jaganmohan Reddy would make a clean sweep in the Seemandhra region.
By forming Telangana, the Congress may retain power in the new state with the help of Telangana Rashtra Samithi. As far as Lok Sabha elections are concerned, the party hopes to win maximum seats in Telangana and expects the YSRC, which is likely to win majority seats in Seemandhra, would support the Congress-led UPA at the Centre.
“By announcing Telangana, the party leadership will be aiming to shoot two birds with one shot and achieve the objective of making Rahul Gandhi as the next Prime Minister,” sources said. Holding this view, Union Minister Vayalar Ravi has curtly told the Seemandhra leaders failed to stop YSRC juggernaut in the June 12 by-elections and even reportedly questioned them how many Lok Sabha seats they would win in their area if Andhra Pradesh was not divided.
He even remained unfazed when the Seemandhra ministers said that many MPs, MLAs and other elected representatives would quit if Telangana was formed. “Let them leave and we will have a new team,” he reportedly told them. With more MLAs joining YSRC, the Congress high command feels that the Assembly should either by dissolved or kept in suspended animation till the tempers are cooled down and elections can be held later.
On paper, the Congress leadership’s game plan is brilliant but what happens if the party loses in Telangana and fails to win the 15 to 16 Lok Sabha seats? Will it revert back to Andhra Pradesh by another stroke of pen? In case the other constituents in the UPA get more seats than the Congress, will the YSR Congress still support its nominee as the next Prime Minister? The high command has already committed a blunder by throwing Jaganmohan Reddy out of party and seems to repeating its act once again by its division on Telangana.
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