The BJP party has finally stepped into action regarding the cash-for-vote and phone-tapping issues, which is a creating a tough rivalry among the dual Telugu states for quite some time.
"Naidu has made life difficult for us by raising the issue of Section 8. As the ruling party at the Centre, the BJP cannot remain silent for long. We want to mediate and convince the two chief ministers to bury their hatchets. However, we are finding it difficult as sentiments are flying high," said a senior BJP leader.
Due to the back to back attacks from the Telangana government, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu has been pressuring Governor ESL Narasimhan since few days, for the imposition of section 8 of the AP Reorganisation Act, which gives the latter, direct control on Hyderabad, being the joint capital of both the states.
The centre even sent the petroleum minister Dharmendra Pradhan to Hyderabad, to administer the situation between the dual state Chief Ministers. Regarding this, Pradhan met Naidu in Visakhapatnam last Thursday and he was supposed to meet KCR on Friday but it was cancelled due to the unknown reasons. However, sources say that, KCR was upset with BJP for keeping mum on Section 8 and that might be the reason for refusing to meet Pradhan.
On the other hand, TRS secretary-general, Keshav Rao said, “Union home minister Rajnath Singh said that the cash-for-vote case and Section 8 are different issues. The BJP has to make this clear to Naidu and rein him in. Even finance minister Arun Jaitley has said in Parliament that the governor cannot have powers of the state. When this is the case, the BJP has to make its partner TDP realize this legal position before trying for a rapprochement."
TDP is nowhere in mood of skipping away the implementation of section 8. senior AP urban development minister P Narayanana said that, "If you say that Section 8 is invalid, then it implies the AP State Re-organisation Act itself is invalid. Are you then not accepting the division of AP and creation of Telangana?"
Meanwhile, the BJP, is trying for a proper solution to keep the situation from going out of hands. Speaking on the issue, BJP national general secretary P Muralidhar Rao said that, “What we are witnessing is a bitter war between two individuals who are fighting for their personal identities. But, they have to set aside their political interests and put the people's interest first."
Silence of centre for many days, regarding the section 8, cannot be appreciated, when the two states in the country are fighting for it. So how early the centre reacts and convinces the two states, that early, it can stop the rivalry regarding the issue.
By Phani
