If Hyd is joint capital : Cakewalk for BRS in AP

NAVEENA GHANATE
Hyderabad

If Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao offers Hyderabad as the joint capital of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, it would be a cakewalk for the Bharat Rashtra Samiti in Andhra Pradesh.

Almost nine years after the bifurcation of combined AP, uncertainty prevails over the capital of Andhra Pradesh.The BRS is for a single capital, though the party has not yet clarified whether it would back Amaravati, Visakhapatnam or Hyderabad.

Ever since Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao announced BRS’ foray into Andhra Pradesh, the discussion has been largely on the capital city.The public mood in Andhra is that Hyderabad was taken away from them despite the efforts the citizens of the region have put in over the years. In fact, some netizens also predicted that KCR might offer Hyderabad to AP as a fourth capital to lure voters.

Hyderabad is meant to be the common capital for 10 years, but the BRS had refused to share Hyderabad and continued to put up a fight for shared resources and financial incentives between the two Telugu states.

Political analysts of Andhra Pradesh said that Hyderabad would definitely fetch votes for the BRS in Andhra Pradesh. After the formation of TS, KCR created an ecosystem where even AP people can live peacefully. Instead of reverse migration, people from AP continue to migrate to Hyderabad for jobs and investors are investing heavily in the state.

BRS Andhra Pradesh leader said, “We will develop only one capital and make it a success for Andhra Pradesh. We will construct a capital wherever the majority want. It will be based on people’s choices. We won’t construct a capital based on politics, but only on people’s choice.”

If the BRS is true to its word, Hyderabad continues to be the choice as the capital of Andhra Pradesh. However, the BRS leader said that KCR’s goal is clear. Like Hyderabad, he wants a global city built in Andhra Pradesh.

Even BRS leaders, while batting for BRS in AP, show how two ruling parties failed to build a capital. Chandrababu ruled for a term, but Amaravati remains the namesake while over four years, Jagan has been batting for three capitals.

The hearing on the Amaravati capital issue is in January-end in the Supreme Court and if the judgement favours three capitals, the AP government will then take a call on it.