Barely two days after setting up a 10-member GoM on Telangana, the Government today reorganised the high-power ministerial panel by dropping HRD Minister M. Pallam Raju and bringing in Defence Minister A K Antony, and also reducing the number of members to seven.

Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde, Defence Minister A K Antony, Finance Minister P Chidambaram, Minister of Health and Family Welfare Ghulam Nabi Azad, Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas M Veerappa Moily and Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh are the members of the reconstituted GoM.

Even as the agitation continued in Andhra Pradesh over the bifurcation issue, the Centre ruled out imposing President’s rule in the State. The Home Minister said the Government would address the concerns of the people of Seemandhra.

Appeal ignored

However, Congress General Secretary Digvijaya Singh’s appeal to the people of Seemandhra region to end their protests failed to evoke any response from the Opposition parties.

While Telugu Desam Party supremo Chandrababu Naidu said he would continue his hunger strike demanding a solution to the problems created by the Centre, a delegation from the YSR Congress Party met the CPI(M) leadership seeking the party’s support against bifurcation.

With the situation in the Seemandhra region worsening, Singh appealed to the people through a statement to give up their agitation so that a healthy dialogue process can move forward to find a solution benefiting both the sides.

“The Congress party assures the people of Seemandhra that it remains fully committed to addressing all their concerns, particularly with respect to safeguarding the interests of people living and working in Telangana, the concerns with regard to education and employment opportunities in Hyderabad for their youth, sharing of river waters and power issue etc,” he said in the statement.

Rejecting the Congress’s appeal, Naidu said Singh could not convince even his party members or the Chief Minister on the bifurcation process.

“Injustice has been done to the people of Andhra. We demand that the problem be sorted out amicably,” said Naidu.

“If you can't convince your own people, why are you attacking us? You've dealt the issue with high-handedness,” he added. He said since the decision to bifurcate the State was taken in Delhi, the solution should also come from Delhi.

He accused the Congress, Telangana Rashtra Samiti and YSRCP of match-fixing.

“Sonia Gandhi wants some seats to make her son the Prime Minister. People will not accept this type of politics,” he said.

Meanwhile, YSRCP leader, Y.S Vijayamma, and a delegation met CPI(M) leaders Prakash Karat and Sitaram Yechury and sought the party’s help to bring normalcy in the State. The visit fuelled speculation of an electoral understanding between both parties in the State.

jigeesh.am@thehindu.co.in

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