© December 2017 | IJIRT | Volume 4 Issue 7 | ISSN: 2349-6002 The Separate State Telangana Movement A - Study Dr. K. Yesudasu M.A, Ph.D., M.C.A., Ph.D., B.Ed., Asst. Professor, Dept. of Public Administration, Kakatiya University TELANGANA PROTESTS MOVEMENT - 1969 In 1973 a political settlement was reached with the TO 1985 Government of India with a Six-Point Formula. It was agreed upon by the leaders of the two regions to In 1969: This year saw the first of the protests from prevent any recurrence of such agitations in the the Telangana region. Some students protested future. To avoid legal problems, constitution was “implementation of the safe guards from Andhra amended (32nd amendment) to give the legal sanctity Pradesh” while some protested for a “Separate to the Six-point formula. Telangana”. The local newspaper Indian Express In 1985, when Telangana employees complained reported that the latter group were dominant. about the violations to six point formula, government According to the 19 January 1969 edition of The enacted government order 610 (GO 610) to correct Indian Express, the agitation turned violent when a the violations in recruitment. As Telangana people crowd attempted to set fire to a sub-inspector‟s complained about non implementation of GO 610, in residence. 17 were injured in Police firing. 2001, government constituted Girgiani commission Discussions about the promised safe-guards were to look into violations. held. The Telangana Regional Committee was, In 1997, the state unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party however, not fully convinced of the outcome.1 This (BJP) passed a resolution seeking a separate agitation was met by a counter agitation by the Telangana. Andhra students accusing the transfer Andhra In 2000, Congress party MLAs from the Telangana employees as a discrimination between one region region who supported a separate Telangana state and the other. The transfers were eventually formed the Telangana Congress Legislators Forum challenged in the high-court. and submitted momorandurn to their president Sonia The army had to be called in. After several days of Gandhi requesting the support the Telangana state. talks with leaders of both regions, on 12 April 1969, A new party called Telangana Rashtra Samithi Prime minister came up with an eight-point plan. (TRS), led by Kalvakuntla Chandrashekar Rao Telangana leaders rejected the plan and protests (KCR), was formed in April 2001 with the single- continued under the leadership of newly formed point agenda of creating a separate Telangana state political party Telangana Praja Samithi in 1969 with Hyderabad as its capital. asking for the formation of Telangana. Under the In 2001, the Congress Working Committee sent a Mulki rules in force at the time, anyone who had resolution to the NDA government for constituting a lived in Hyderabad for 15 years was considered a second SRC to look into the Telangana state demand. local, and was thus eligible for certain government This was rejected by then union home minister L.K. posts. Advani citing that smaller states were neither viable In 1972: When the Supreme Court upheld the Mulki nor conducive to the integrity of the country. rules the Jai Andhra movement, with the aim of re- In April 2002, Advani wrote a letter to MP A. forming a separate state of Andhra, was started in Narendra rejecting a proposal to create Telangana Coastal Andhra and Rayalseema regions. The state explaining that “regional disparities in economic movement lasted for 110 days. The Supreme Court development could be tackled through planning and upheld the implementation of Mulki rules. The efficient use of available resources”. He said that the people from the Andhra region viewed the Mulki NDA government, therefore, does “not propose rules as “treating them like aliens in their own land”. creation of a separate state of Telangana” However in IJIRT 145103 INTERNATIONAL JO URNAL OF INNOVATIVE RESEARCH IN TECHNOLOGY 437 © December 2017 | IJIRT | Volume 4 Issue 7 | ISSN: 2349-6002 2012, Advani said that if their then partner for a separate state for Telangana. The state Congress cooperated during NDA tenure, a separate state of and its ally Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen have left it Telangana could have been created. This was to the Congress high command to take a final confirmed by the President of the TDP, Chandrababu decision. Minutes of the meeting were faxed to Naidu, on 1 September 2013 in a public meeting. Congress high command. In the run-up to the 2004 Assembly & Parliament elections, then Union Home Minister L. K. Advani BIFURCATION ANNOUNCEMENT SEPARATE ruled out inclusion of Telangana in the NDA agenda TELANGANA and said “Unless there is consensus among all political parties in the state and unless that consensus On 9 December 2009, Union Minister of Home is reflected in a resolution of the state Assembly, we Affairs P. Chidambaram announced that the Indian don‟t propose to include it in the NDA agenda” government would start the process of forming a For these elections, the Congress party and the TRS separate Telangana state, pending the introduction forged an electoral alliance in the Telangana region and passage of a separation resolution in the Andhra to consider the demand of separate Telangana State. Pradesh assembly. This resulted in protests across Congress came to power in the state and formed a both Andhra and Rayalseema. Students, workers, coalition government at the centre; TRS joined the lawyers & various organizations in the regions coalition after the common minimum program of the launched the Samaikyandhra Movement demanding coalition government included that the demand for that the state be kept united. MLAs from these separate Telangana state will be considered after due regions also submitted their resignations in protest consultations and consensus. seeking a reversal of the home minister‟s statement. In February 2009 the state government declared that On 23 December, keeping in view the reactions of it had no objection, in principle, to the formation of people of other regions, the Government of India separate Telangana and that the time had come to announced that no action on Telangana will be taken move forward decisively on this issue. To resolve until a consensus is reached by all parties and groups related issues, the government constituted a joint in the state. Coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema region house committee. In the lead-up to the 2009 General MLAs started withdrawing their resignations while Elections in India, all the major parties in Andhra MLAs and ministers from Telangana started Pradesh supported the formation of Telangana. submitting their resignations, and demanded that the In the 2009 elections TRS managed to win only 10 Centre take immediate steps to initiate the process of assembly seats out of the 45 it contested and only 2 bifurcating Andhra Pradesh. MP seats. Some media analysts thought Telangana A Joint Action Committee (also known as JAC or sentiment faded. TJAC) comprising political and non-political groups Within few months of getting re-elected as popular was formed to lead the demand for separate CM, Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy (YSR) died in a Telangana with Osmania University professor M helicopter crash in September 2009. This resulted in a Kodandararn Reddy as its convenor. leadership crisis within the Congress party and also On 3 February, the government appointed a five- created a political vacuum in the state. During this member committee headed by Justice Srikrishna to time, TRS president K. Chandrashekar Rao (KCR) look into the issue. raised his pitch for the separate state. On 29 November 2009, he started a fast-unto-death, SRIKRISHNA COMMITTEE demanding that the Congress party introduce a Telangana bill in Parliament. Student organizations The Srikrishna Committee headed by former Chief employee unions, and various organizations joined Justice B. N. Srikrishna toured all the regions of state the movement. General strikes shut down Telangana extensively and invited people from all sections of on 6 and 7 December. In an all party meeting called the society to give their opinion on the statehood. It by the state government on the night of 7 December received over one lakh petitions and representations to discuss regarding KCR‟s fast and how to handle it, from political parties, organizations, NGOs and all major Opposition parties extended their support individuals. It also held consultations with political IJIRT 145103 INTERNATIONAL JO URNAL OF INNOVATIVE RESEARCH IN TECHNOLOGY 438 © December 2017 | IJIRT | Volume 4 Issue 7 | ISSN: 2349-6002 parties and general public while also factoring in the KCR met Prime minister to explain the situation in impact of recent developments on different sections Telangna due to the strike and asked to expedite the of people such as women, children, students, decision on the statehood demand. The strike has minorities, Other Backward Classes, Scheduled resulted in an unprecedented power crisis in the state Castes and Scheduled Tribes. with only 223 MU of power generated against the On 16 December 2010, two weeks before the demand of 275MU impacting both the industry and deadline for the submission of the Srikrishna report, agriculture. TRS organized a public meeting in Warangal. It was Due to Rail blockade call on 15 October 110 trains estimated that over 2.6 million people attended this were cancelled and 68 trains were diverted by meeting. It was reported that even more would have authorities. The railways operated 12 trains and attended, but were stranded due to traffic jams along Hyderabad metro trails with full police protection. roads leading to the city. Telangana protestors tried to have sit in on rail TRS president K. Chandrasekhar Rao appealed to platforms or on railway tracks at various places. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to note that the Police arrested thousands of protesters including 8 people of Telangana were losing patience.