Congress Googly on 'T' rekindles hopes of unified Andhra

  Even as the pro-Telangana activists waited with bated breath to receive some good news, the Congress High Command gave a jolt. Congress' mouthpiece or rather state party affairs in-charge, Ghulam Nabi Azad played the messenger to convey news on Telangana. What he didn't anticipate was that his statement would intensify the ongoing agitation.

While the Congress' decision hasn't come as a surprise given its past records, it did come out suddenly. In fact, the Congress did not even give KCR enough time to prepare his victory speech had the party's declaration been in favour of Telangana.
The High Command's decision to buy more time taking refuge in the fact that issue of such sensitive nature cannot be decided under pressure and thus require more time has irked pro-Telangana activists.
Although the declaration has drawn flak from many quarters, there also is another section which is quite content with the Centre's decision to delay its verdict on the issue. At least for now, it seems so!
Although the Centre's statement has irked many, the decision has also rekindled hopes among Seemandhra and Samaikyandhra activists who are seeing this as a positive twist to the tale. It's worth mentioning here that the parties (Seemandhra and Samaikyandhra) are fighting against bifurcation of the state. In fact, some Seemandhra leaders who camped in Delhi earlier this week for a couple of days also met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to brief him on the benefits of keeping Andhra Pradesh unified! Did the strategy work or in any way influence the Centre's decision to backtrack on its words?
What happens next? All we can hope is that the state remains peaceful and no untoward incidents are reported. The police has already imposed prohibitory orders in some parts of the city and stepped up security across the state considering the repercussions of such a decision. One can only hope that with time, things will eventually fall in place and it will be business as usual.
-Reshmi@sakshipost