'Forming Telangana is the only option now'

The Telangana Rashtra Samithi has rejected the Srikrishna Commission's report on Telangana and decided to launch a series of protests against it. The TRS is adamant that it will not accept any of the panel's recommendations and only settle for the formation of a separate state.

Kalvakuntla Taraka Rama Rao, TRS legislator and the son of party chief K Chandrashekhar Rao, outlines the party's future course of action in this interview with rediff.com's Vicky Nanjappa.

What was your initial reaction to the report?

It was shocking to see the kind of recommendations that have been made. It is not the kind of report we expected and we rejected it outright.

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Does the TRS have any other option in mind? The Union government has urged all political parties to discuss the report with an open mind.

No, there cannot be any (other) option. I do not understand these recommendations and why they were made. The only option was to form Telangana and our protest has always been about that. The government can say what it wants, but we are firm that a (separate) state should be formed and the demands of the people should be heeded to.

Hyderabad seems to be the bone of contention here. Do you agree?

Hyderabad has always been a part of Telangana and will continue to be so. When a separate Telangana is carved out, then Hyderabad should be part of that state. The only solution on hand is the formation of Telangana state with ten districts. Hyderabad has to be its capital. At times, we feel that there is pressure from some industrialists regarding the Hyderabad aspect.

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You would not agree to Hyderabad being made into a Union Territory?

No, we would not be okay with that. Hyderabad is part and parcel of Telangana and it should remain so.

The government thinks that the report has laid down options and it was the best possible thing that they could do. Any option other than the formation of Telangana is not acceptable to the TRS and the people of Telangana. The government and the commission should have respected the sentiments of the people, fulfilled its promise and made sure that the peoples' demands were met.

But you should consider the sentiments of people from the rest of Andhra Pradesh too. What about the problems faced by them?

The report states that there are portions of the state which are backward and need attention. It also goes on to say that the people there have been deprived of certain rights. It also gives an option to create a separate state.

At some level, the committee has accepted that there is a problem on hand. The recommendations then should have been straightforward in nature. That would have solved the entire problem.

You don't think that the government has thought this through? Shouldn't you give the government some more time since this is a sensitive issue?

I was also surprised by the committee's decision. The government had ten months to mull over this issue and at the end of that, this is what they have done. Ten months is a long time and if they were serious, they would have given a better solution.

What is your immediate demand now?

The government must pass a bill in Parliament during its next session. The bill should deal with Telangana and should pave the way for the formation of a separate state. This is what we all will be pushing for. Let the government try and understand the problem. Let them weigh the pros and cons and then take a proper decision after passing a bill in Parliament.

The common man is worried about the possible resurgence of violent protests. What stand has your party taken on this?

We are not in favour of violence. We do not believe in that. I understand that the students have called for a bandh and we hope it doesn't turn violent. The TRS will act like a big brother in this protest.