Post-independence history
When India became independent from the British Empire, the Nizam of Hyderabad wanted to retain his independence, but the Government of India amalgamated the state of Hyderabad into the Indian union by force in September 1948 by sending in the Indian army in an operation known as “Operation Polo”. In the post independence era, the Telugu-speaking people were distributed in about 22 districts; 9 of them in the Telangana region of Nizam's Dominions (Hyderabad State), 12 in the Madras Presidency and one in French-controlled Yanam. The Telugu speaking areas were carved out of an erstwhile Madras state by popular agitation by the leaders like Potti Sri Ramulu to create Andhra state in 1952. (vishalandhra movement)
Merger of Telangana and Andhra
In December 1953, the States Reorganization Commission was appointed to prepare for the creation of states on linguistic lines. The States Reorganization Commission (SRC)[ Fazal Ali Commission] was not in favour of an immediate merger of Telangana region with Andhra state, despite the common language between the two. The SRC voiced several concerns about the merger of all Telugu-speaking regions into Andhra Pradesh :
Telangana’s economy was less developed though it had a larger revenue base than the rest of the proposed state;
there were fears that the dams planned on the Krishna and Godavari rivers would harm the interests of the Telangana region and
fears that the people of Andhra would have an advantage in securing jobs because of their higher levels of education. The commission proposed that the Telangana region be consituted as a seperate state , with a provision for unification with Andhra state, after the 1961 general elections, if a resolution in favour of such a merger could be passed in the state assembly with two-third majority.
The central government did not accept the recommendations of the SRC and went ahead with the proposal to unify the telengana & the Andhra regions to form the state of Andhra Pradesh.the people of telengana being backward compared to the rest of Andhra , feared that major portion of the employment opportunities, resources ,development activities etc would go in favour of the Andhra people who were relatively well off and educated. in order to sort out the various apprehensions of the people of telengana the central government mediated an agreement between the representatives of Andhra region and telengana region known as the “GENTLEMEN’S AGREEMENT” . The agreement provided reassurances to the Telangana people as well to Andhra people in terms of power sharing as well as administrative domicile rules and distribution of expenses of various regions. In short, the gentlemen’s agreement promised to develop the telengana region by infusing revenue,creating infrastructure,setting up educational institutions, hospitals etc & also providing domicile rules, adequate socio-economic-political empowerment of people of telengana so that they come on par with their counterparts in the Andhra region. The agreement provided safeguards with the purpose of preventing discrimination against Telangana by any future government of Andhra Pradesh .the state of Andhra Pradesh was established on November 1, 1956 following the merger of the Andhra & the telengana regions. the gentlemen’s agreement was to be reviewed after ten years.
A BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE GENTLEMEN’S AGREEMENT:
1. one legislature & one Governor for the whole of Andhra Pradesh
2. For the Telangana region there will be a Regional Standing Committee of the state assembly consisting of the members of the State Assembly belonging to that region empowered with Legislation relating to specified matters(*). The advice tendered by the Regional Committee will normally be accepted by the Government and the State Legislature. In case of difference of opinion, reference will be made to the Governor whose decision will be binding.
(*) SPECIFIED MATTERS:
ECONOMIC--Development and economic planning within the framework of development plans formulated by the State Legislature.
POLITICAL--Local Self Government institutions
HEALTH--Public health and sanitation, local hospitals and dispensaries.
EDUCATION--Primary and secondary education.
--Regulation of admission to the educational institutions in the telangana region.
--Prohibition—Sale of agricultural lands.
INDUSTRIES--Cottage and small scale Industries, and Agriculture, Cooperative Societies, Markets and Fairs
3. DOMICILE RULES : A temporary provision be made to ensure that for a period of five years, Telangana is regarded as a unit as far as recruitment to subordinate services is concerned; posts borne on the cadre of these services may be reserved for being filled up by persons who satisfy the domicile conditions as prescribed under the existing Hyderabad Mulki Rules. ( 12 years of Stay in Telangana area)
4. DISTRIBUTION OF EXPENDITURE BETWEEN TELANGANA AND ANDHRA REGIONS--- the expenditure of the new state on central and general administration should be borne proportionately by the two regions and the balance of income should be reserved for expenditure on the development of Telangana area .
5. The existing educational facilities including Technical Education in Telangana should be secured to the students of Telangana and further improved---
6. The cabinet will consist of members in proportion of 60:40 percent for Andhra and Telangana respectively, out of 40 % of Telangana ministers, one will be a Muslim from Telangana. If the Chief Minister is from one region the other region should be given Dy Chief Ministership.
Separate Telangana state movement
1969 Movement
In the following years after the formation of Andhra Pradesh state, Hyderabad being the State capital , attracted large inflows of people from the coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema regions of the State. For the affluent and enterprising families migrating from the fertile delta, land was the most coveted investment. And it was easily acquired, given that Telangana had developed little under a feudal dispensation. As the region came to be peopled by “non-natives”, discontent spread, particularly among students, who were most concerned about unemployment. The “settlers” were seen as taking away much-needed jobs and grabbing valuable land. The people of telengana alleged that the agreements and guarantees offered under the gentlemen’s agreement were not implemented in spirit. Discontent with the 1956 Gentleman's agreement intensified in January 1969 when the guarantees that had been agreed on were supposed to lapse. The call for government action soon morphed into a demand for a separate state. Student agitation for the continuation of the agreement began at Osmania University in Hyderabad and spread to other parts of the region. Government employees and opposition members of the state legislative assembly swiftly threatened "direct action" in support of the students. This movement, also known as Telangana movement, led to widespread violence and deaths of hundreds of people and students of this Telangana region. Approximately 360 students gave up their lives in this movement.
Although the Congress party faced dissension within its ranks, its leadership stood against additional linguistic states, which were regarded as "anti-national." The defectors from the Congress, led by M. Chenna Reddy, founded the Telangana People's Association (Telangana Praja Samithi). Despite electoral successes, some of the new party leaders gave up their agitation in September 1971 and, much to the disgust of many separatists, rejoined the safer political haven of the Congress ranks.
Even as the agitation petered out, another related issue reached boiling point. The Telangana agitation had demanded, among other things, the implementation of a 1919 firman by the Nizam (which came to be termed as the mulki rules), which said only “Mulkis” were eligible for public appointments in Telangana. A Mulki was one who was born in the region or had resided there continuously for 15 years and had given an affidavit abandoning the idea of returning to his/her native place.
After a full Bench of the Andhra Pradesh High Court held the “Mulki” rules to be invalid after the formation of Andhra Pradesh, the State government appealed to the Supreme Court. In 1972, the apex court declared them to be valid and in force. The ruling, which denied “non-Mulkis” government jobs in Telangana, including Hyderabad, spurred the“Jai Andhra” movement. For 11 months in 1973, the State was under President’s Rule in the face of a growing agitation. The Supreme Court judgment was nullified by an Act of Parliament, and a Six Point formula was drafted guaranteeing “adequate preference to local candidates in admissions to educational institutions” but “subject to the requirements of the State as a whole”. Similarly, local candidates would be preferred “to specified extent in the matter of direct recruitment for certain posts”. A tribunal was to be constituted to deal with grievances regarding appointments, seniority and promotion. However the six point formula rendered the continuance of mulki rules unnecessary.
Much of the 1980s were taken up with N.T. Rama Rao’s political debut followed by the Telugu Desam Party’s (TDP) heady rise to power. The actor-turned-politician’s rhetoric of Telugu unity overshadowed, if not dulled, the demand for a Telangana state.
Movement in 1990-2004
In the 1990s the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), promised a separate Telangana state if they came to power. BJP created Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Uttarkhand states in year 2000 as promised. But the BJP could not create a separate Telangana state because of the opposition from its coalition partner, Telugu Desam Party. These developments brought new life into the separatist Telangana movement by year 2000. K.Chandrasheka rao a former member of parliament of the TDP formed a new party called Telangana Rashtra Samithi (or TRS) was formed with the single point agenda of creating a separate Telangana state, with Hyderabad as its capital.
2004 and later
In 2004, for Assembly and Parliament elections, the Congress party and the TRS had an electoral alliance in the Telangana region with the promise of a separate Telangana State. Congress came to power in the state under the chief ministership of Y.S.Rajashekar reddy and formed a coalition government at the centre. TRS joined the coalition government in 2004 and was successful in making a separate Telangana state a part of the common minimum program (CMP) of the coalition government. the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance government constituted a subcommittee headed by Pranab Mukherjee to build political consensus on the issue by involving all elected members of parliament from Andhra pradesh.however, even after five and a half years no agreement could be reached on the issue. In the state too Andhra Pradesh chief minister Dr.Y.S.Rajashekar reddy adopted a staunch stand against creating a separate state of telengana.
In September 2006 TRS withdrew support for the Congress led coalition government at the centre on the grounds of indecision by the government over the delivery of its electoral promise to create Telangana.
In December 2006, the TRS won the by-election to the Karimnagar parliamentary constituency with a record margin.There was pressure on the Congress party to create a Telangana state in 2008.
All TRS legislators in Parliament and in State (4MPs, 16MLAs, 3MLCs) resigned in the 1st week of March 2008 and forced by-elections to increase the pressure on Congress party, and to intensify the movement.
By-elections for the 16 MLA seats, 4 MP seats were held May 29, 2008. During the election campaign the TRS party said it is a referendum on a Telangana state but both Congress and TDP parties said it is not a referendum on Telangana and also said that they are not opposed to the formation of Telangana state. To the disappointment of Telangana proponents TRS retained only 7 out of 16 MLA seats and 2 out of 4 MP seats after the by-elections.
In June 2008, Devender Goud, who is considered number two in the TDP, a politbureau member and Deputy Leader of the Telugu Desam Legislature Party, resigned from the party saying he would devote his time and energy to the formation of a separate Telangana state. In July 2008, Mr Goud along with some other leaders like Mr. E Peddi Reddy formed a new party called Nava Telangana Praja Party.
On 9 October 2008, in a historical turnaround from its 26-year history TDP announced its support for the creation of Telengana.
2009
Ahead of the 2009 General Elections in India all the major parties in Andhra Pradesh supported Telangana state.
In February 2009, state government declared that and that the time had come to move forward decisively on this issue. To resolve issues related to it the government constituted joint house committee. Congress Party headed by Chief Minister Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy held that it had no objection, in principle, to the formation of separate Telangana but since the Muslim minorities were opposed to creation of separate state along with majority of people, telengana could not be realized.
The Congress returned to power both at center and state. However , taking advantage of the political vaccum created after the death of Chief Minister Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy (YSR) , the opposition parties renewed their call for a separate telengana state. The Congress onto the back foot found itself politically isolated as other major Opposition parties – the TDP, the TRS, the Praja Rajyam, the Communist Party of India (CPI) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) – who favoured a resolution on Telangana in the Assembly.
In the first week of Dec 2009, the TRS president, K. Chandrashekar Rao (KCR) started a fast-unto-death demanding that the Congress party introduce a Telangana bill in the Parliament. Student organizations, employee unions and various organizations joined the movement. Scores of people commited suicide in support of Telangana state. The decline of KCR's health has contributed to a sense of urgency for the central government to take a decision on the issue of Telangana statehood.
There was also a looming fear in the central government that maosists may take advantage of the situation and capitalize on the frenzied emotions of the student movements or worse, infiltrate the agitators to serve their purpose.such a situation could degrade into chaos as seen at lalgarh.
Finally on Dec 9th 2009, Mr. P. Chidambaram, Union Minister of Home Affairs announced that a resolution in the Andhra Pradesh assembly for the creation of a separate Telangana state would be introduced & the formation of a separate Telangana state will be initiated soon.
On December 10, 2009, Indian government has agreed to start the process of forming a separate Telangana.Central government asked Andhra Pradesh state government to pass of a resolution in the legislative assembly (as per article 3 of Constitution.
While the decision to form the state of telengana was celebrated in the the telengana region,the non –telengana regions(comprising coastal Andhra & rayalaseema )protested.
Several members of Andhra Pradesh's legislature including ministers in the State Cabinet belonging to these two regions submitted their resignations to protest the creation of the new state. The new movement termed “SAMAIKHYA ANDHRA MOVEMENT”(^) emerged. Cutting across party lines elected representatives belonging to various political parties submitted their resignations, leaving the state on the brink of president’s rule. All parties witnessed a fissure between the elected representatives of the Andhra & telengana regions.
(^)—objections raised by the SAMAIKHYA ANDHRA MOVEMENT:
1. Creation of a telengana state would result in fragmentation of resources.
2. If telengana state would be created, it would become the upper riparian state with respect to the Andhra region. Diversion of waters of Krishna & godavari to meet irrigation needs of telengana could majorly affect the water requirements of the fertile belts of coastal Andhra & result in food insecurity & result in inter state water disputes.
3. It could intensify the animosity between Andhra & telengana people who have cultural ties.
4. As most of the major industries of Andhra Pradesh are located in Hyderabad & the industrial belts of districts such as nalagonda, mahbubnagar etc (part of telengana), and creation of a separate state would result in a major part of these industries to go to telengana.this would rob Andhra region of all its development. further separate establishment of a new industries, infrastructure & administrative setup need a great deal of investment. [ since a major portion of entrepreneurial activity & investments in the state since its inception been contributed by persons hailing from the Andhra region, they are reluctant to forgo their establishments]
5. Neither the Andhra region nor the telengana regions are self sufficient in all sectors. While the concentration of industries lies majorly in the arid telengana belt, the concentration of agricultural lands of cultivation are concentrated in coastal Andhra. Since all three regions are interdependent on each other,any bifurcation could affect balanced development.further,it would lead to loss of revenue to the Andhra region as the revenue base of the telengana region is larger than that compared to the Andhra & rayalaseema regionss.
Pro-telengana activists however allege that opposition to the creation of the telengana state is to protect enormous properties in Telangana region accumulated by people from Andhra region.
Owing to immense pressure exerted by elected representatives of the non-telengana regions, the central government sought to “put on hold” the decision to create a separate state of telengana.this evoked a similar kind of response among telengana’s representatives who threatened to resign & intensify the movement for a separate state. a joint action committee cutting across party lines was formed with a demand to introduce a resolution for the formation of telengana state in the parliament. the pro-telengana lobby has also shot down the prospect of creating a second states reorganization committee to discuss the feasibility of creation of telengana ,as they suspect that it is a ploy to further delay/stall indefinitely the creation of the telengana state.
VIEW POINT OF PROPONENTS OF A SEPARATE TELENGANA STATE:
Proponents of a separate Telangana state feel all the agreements, accords, formulas, plans and assurances on the floor of legislature and Lok Sabha, in last 50+ years, could not be honoured and Telangana was forced to remain neglected, exploited and backward. The experiment to remain as one state proved to be a futile exercise and therefore, separation is found to be the best solution.
