Not many people know that the newly-inducted Union Minister of State for Labour and Employment Bandaru Dattatreya had played a key role in strengthening the then Telangana movement, which forced the erstwhile UPA government to deliver statehood to Telangana.
In the wake of escalating tensions between the two states over sharing of river waters, power, public sector undertakings and conduct of intermediate exams, Dattatreya had volunteered to build bridges between K Chandrasekhar Rao (KCR) and N Chandrababu Naidu. “I will work towards developing good relations between the two warring chief ministers,” he said recently.
The four-time MP from Secunderabad and a prominent leader of the Saffron party in the then undivided Andhra Pradesh, Dattatreya rose through the ranks from being a full-time RSS pracharak to become the lone representative of Telangana State in Narendra Modi’s Cabinet.
The 67-year-old politico, who hails from a backward class, has been seen by many as a leader who has no political foes and is considered as a ‘leader of masses’ because of his simplicity, soft-spoken attitude and down-to-earth nature. Probably, this is the reason why every section of people, whether they are from an affluent class or from the downtrodden group of the society, makes a beeline for meeting Dattatreya everyday to resolve their issues. He is well liked and respected even by his political opponents and his four-time victory from a Christian dominated constituency is a testimonial to his magnanimous personality.
Interestingly, Dattatreya expressed his willingness to mediate between KCR and Naidu when the latter had floated the idea of involving ‘elders of repute’ belonging to both the states to resolve tricky issues between the two states.
What has prompted Dattatreya to build bridges between the two warring chief ministers? The answer lies in his deep interest to project the BJP as a party which works for the over-all development of the Telegus and the fact that Seemandhara people who live in Secunderabad Lok Sabha segment, which is being represented by him, constitute a sizeable chunk of voters in the segment. Moreover, the Saffron party wants to strengthen its base in both the states.
Though the BJP’s old hand has so far not initiated efforts to bring camaraderie between Rao and Naidu, he said he would very soon hold talks with both the chief ministers separately to make them bury the hatchet. He further advised both the state governments to consult the Centre if one party feels that the other is flouting the AP Reorganisation Act-2014.
Although he hails from Telangana, the BJP veteran is treated with utmost respect in the neighbouring state. But, it would not be an easy task for the BJP senior who has been associated with various organisations representing hawkers, auto drivers and unskilled workers and has got the experience of solving their issues, to address the contentious issues concerning both the states amicably.
Besides the old issues like sharing of rivers, electricity, conduct of intermediate examinations etc., the Centre’s decision to rename domestic terminal in the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport, located at Shamshabad here, seems to have further widened the rift between the two states. If Andhra government defends the decision as an appropriate one as the old name of the terminal has been restored now, the TRS government says it is unfair and wants the terminal be named after any Telangana icon.
Following this fresh row between the two, Dattatreya’s task of brokering truce between the two sibling states appears to have become more difficult. His efforts come at a testing time when TRS government is accusing the Centre of showing step-motherly attitude towards the new state.
No comments:
Post a Comment