The Telangana question

Union home minister P Chidambaram did not intend Tuesday’s meeting with the eight main political parties from Andhra Pradesh in Delhi to resolve the Telangana issue. It is not even clear whether it was meant to pave the way for the formation of the new state or whether it was meant to find out from the stakeholders whether the Telangana idea is feasible. But he has indicated what is on his mind. He has alerted participants about allowing Maoists — without naming them — to take advantage of the democratic war of attrition. With the popular mood in the state running high, it was perhaps necessary to have brought everyone to the table.

But talks are not an end in themselves. What is needed is a quick and fair resolution of the problem. There are indications that the Centre and the Congress are playing for time and they are resorting to the tried and tested ways of prevarication and protraction. That may not be the best way of addressing the burning issue. Due to acts of omission and commission of the recent past, Telangana has become a burning question. Putting off difficult decisions may not be the best option.

Chidambaram’s veiled reference to the Maoists gives an inkling of one of the reservations of the Centre and the Congress party about Telangana — the apprehension that the Maoists could gain political prominence in the economically and socially backward and sensitive state. But it would be a grave mistake to decide the issue of Telangana on the assumption as to how it would help or deter the Maoists.

There is of course the question of the status of Hyderabad. Apparently, politicians from Andhra and Rayalaseema are not opposed to the formation of Telangana as they are to Hyderabad being made capital of the new state because the economic stakes amounting to thousands of crores of rupees in the state capital. This is the crux of the matter. There are no easy solutions and no one is going to yield ground. The advocates of Telangana have no doubt that Hyderabad is an integral part of the region. Politicians from the other parts of the state firmly believe that the capital is vital to their interests.

The central government will have to be transparent as well as impartial. What can be done immediately is to place in public domain the findings of the Pranab Mukherjee committee that looked into the Telangana issue during UPA’s first term in office. That will help clarifying many of the issues.