Now that Amit Shah is Union Home Minister and G Kishan Reddy is his deputy, it will be interesting to watch what this new dispensation would dish out for Telangana. Though the Centre is bound constitutionally to redeem all the promises made in the AP State Reorganisation Act, 2014 for Telangana, the Union Home Ministry could prolong, if it wishes, in honouring the commitments, given the bitter rivalry that is brewing between BJP and the TRS.

There is a growing feeling that the BJP might tighten screws in showing the TRS its place as Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao’s federal front initiative, intended to craft a coalition of anti-BJP and anti-Congress parties, had never gone down well with the saffron party. According to sources, the BJP, is now raring to take the TRS head-on to spread in Telangana as the soil is quite conducive now for its growth more than ever before.  

BJP may create problems for TRS?

To achieve the goal, the party is expected to create as many problems as possible for TRS and would try to grow at its expense.The TRS had already made it clear that it would fight with the Centre for what is due for the State but it would be a long-drawn-out struggle as the pink party is not in a position of strength to force the Centre to cede to its demands with BJP emerging as a monolith by scoring a triple century on its own in the Lok Sabha elections.

When it comes to issues like sanctioning of Bayyaram Steel Plant, railway coach factory at Kazipet and Tribal university, it is the Centre which has to take a call. If by any chance, the bonhomie that is now existing between AP and Telangana after the exit of N Chandrababu Naidu, fizzles out, the Centre could still create problems for Telangana by not bothering about the role it is supposed to play in resolving the issues between the two States.With the TRS adopting a policy of confrontation, it remains to be seen how it would script its strategies. But at present, indications are that the BJP would turn out to be an irrepressible force, using the Centre to promote its political interests.

Thorny issues

The thorny issues that plague the two states include sharing of river waters, division of institutions of the AP State Reorganisation Act, 2014, shifting of the office of KRMB to Vijayawada. Till now the Centre had done very little for Telangana and AP is a little better off as the Centre had announced a railway zone with headquarters at Vizag.