Nothing catalytical has happened that could be said to have stirred the sensitive soul of Chandrasekhara Rao in sudden sympathy for the Telangana people. Telangana returned more chief minsters than coastal Andhra. Rao was not only one of them but also became a Prime Minister later. To say this is not to deny the urgent need for addressing the concerns of the area and its people who allowed themselves to be played around by power-seeking politicians. They remember the havoc caused by the 1969 agitation for a separate home for people in the Telangana region, the price the common people both in Telanana and Andhra had to pay and also how Chenna Reddy hijacked the movement for his own political rehabilitation, ultimately merging the Telanagana Praja Samithi with the Congress.
History has a tendency to repeat itself.
Parties in the state are cautious in their support or opposition to the movement. Officially, the Congress is silent, waiting for further developments helping it to make up its mind. MLAs of the party fear that if the high command does not take a decision supporting the move for a separate home, it may have trouble in the coming elections to local bodies. Congressmen are worried that the reckless promises Chandrababu Naidu is making of late, assuring thousands of crores of rupees for Telangana development, may deprive their party of an important lever to discomfit the chief minister. But AP Congress president M. Satyanarayana Rao has clearly stated his opposition to a separate Telangana state.