)
Instant celebrations erupted in Hyderabad and elsewhere in the Telangana region Tuesday afternoon after local television channels broke the news of the passage of bifurcation Bill in the Lok Sabha.
Sounds of firecrackers were heard in the city. Supporters of Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) celebrated with song and dance at the party headquarters. Friends and family members were seen exchanging best wishes, and sending SMSes with the familiar slogan Jai Telangana. Young people took out rallies in the city.
A TRS leader said the people of Telangana had waited for this day for the last 57 years. Deputy chief minister D Rajanarasimha praised UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi as the mother of Telangana while Telangana joint action committee (JAC) chairman M Kodandaram termed it as the victory of people.
The endorsement of the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Bill, 2013, by the Lok Sabha also overshadowed the ongoing drama surrounding the stated resignation of chief minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy even as he postponed his decision by a day.
However, Seemandhra leaders questioned the way the debate and voting took place. Union minister Kavuri Sambasiva Rao, who represents the Eluru Lok Sabha constituency in West Godavari district, said they would approach the Supreme Court against the Bill. YSR Congress party president YS Jagan Mohan Reddy called for a bandh in Seemandhra on Wednesday against the ‘dictatorial action’ of Sonia Gandhi.
AP NGO Association president P Ashok Babu, who has been in the forefront of anti-bifurcation agitations, said the people of Seemandhra will bury the Congress party in the forthcoming elections.
Meanwhile, Pitani Satyanarayana, a minister close to the chief minister, informed the media that Kiran Reddy will proceed to submit his resignation to Governor ESL Narasimhan after holding a media conference Wednesday morning.
Ganta Srinivasa Rao, a minister from north coastal Andhra, resigned from the government and also from the Congress party on Tuesday. It is still unclear as to how many ministers and MLAs would follow in chief minister's footsteps tomorrow. A big group of ministers and MLAs in the Seemandhra region had, however, reiterated their loyalty to the Congress party yesterday.
The Congress government in the state is barely in a position to manage its numbers. The UPA government in case Kiran Kumar Reddy tenders his resignation could either install someone in his place to continue a civilian government in office till the elections are over or can straight away impose Governor’s rule.
In the normal course, the governor is expected to ask Reddy to hold the office to head a caretaker government . However, this appears a remote possibility as both the chief minister and the party leadership seem to have alternative plans.
