Leave AP unified, Vijayamma tells Shinde

Following is the full text of the letter written by YSRCP honourary president Smt. Y.S. Vijayamma to Union Home Minister Shinde on Sept 11, 2013 objecting to his twisting the facts on the party's stand on bifurcation and asking him to keep the state united.


Smt. YS Vijayamma, MLA

Hon.
President

 

To

Shri Sushil Kumar Shinde,

Union Home Minister,

Government of India,

New Delhi.

Respected Sir,

We would like to draw your attention to your
remarks on bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh at a monthly media briefing on
Saturday, 7th September 2013 which has been widely reported in the
press.

You are quoted to have said that ‘The CWC took the
decision in favour of Telangana only after all political parties gave their
consent in writing. Except the CPM, all major political parties from the state
have supported Telangana’.

As a responsible political party, we did not expect
that there would be a need for us to write such a letter to you vis-à-vis on
bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh. What has baffled us is the Union Minister,
holding a responsible position, distorting facts.

We have reminded you repeatedly that five parties
namely Congress, BJP, TRS, TDP and CPI have supported the separation of the
state, while three parties YSR Congress, CPM and MIM have been vehemently
opposing the move to divide the state.

While this is the raw reality, your mention of only
one Party opposing the exercise is sheer distortion of facts which does not go
well with the High Office you are holding.

Therefore, we are enclosing herewith the letters
written by our Party to you and Honorable Prime Minister as well. We have been
very explicit on the bifurcation issue right from the all party meeting held in
Delhi on December 28, 2012. We reiterated our party stand in a letter addressed
to Prime Minister with a copy marked to you. We place hereunder the text of the
letter for your kind reference.

‘Doing justice to one region does not mean causing injustice to
the other regions. This fundamental principle was ignored by Congress Party
which has priorities in votes and seats. It is not fair on the part of the
Centre to keep with it the powers of restructuring any State unless it can take
decisions that would be agreeable to all the concerned parties without
injustice to any region. This is the view expressed by three political parties‐
YSR Congress Party, MIM and CPI (M). If you cannot do justice, do not bifurcate
the State and maintain status quo—this is the stand of the three parties.

How can the Congress claim that it has arrived at 100 per cent
consensus among all political parties on the division issue when elected public
representatives from Rayalaseema and Coastal Andhra are resigning and the two
regions are on the boil with strikes and dharnas? Only five political parties
have agreed for the bifurcation. They are: TDP, TRS, Congress, CPI and BJP.’

We are sending you copies of the earlier letters
with a view that you would correct the distortion of facts you have been
speaking about.

How can you (the Centre) say that there is
consensus (acceptable to everybody) on the issue of splitting the State, when
the proposal of division is not acceptable to Political Parties and crores of
people of Andhra Pradesh, who believe that injustice is being meted out to?
Neither, do you have acceptability to your proposal nor do people believe that
justice is done.

Then, is it prudent to distort facts?

As a member of the Congress Working Committee (CWC)
and Union Minister for Home Affairs, you might have been well aware that YSR
Congress Party (YSRCP) MLAs have resigned on July 25 itself while the CWC took
the decision to divide the State on July 30. They quit in protest and to mount pressure
on your Party against bifurcation.

Our Party President YS Jagan Mohan Reddy and I have
quit the posts and went on an indefinite hunger strike for 12 days in protest
against the division. These facts must have come to your notice, for sure,
being a Home Minister, or probably it must have skipped your attention.

You should also know that I led a Party delegation
to Delhi and met the President, Prime Minister and leaders of other political
parties on the issue and held a protest deeksha at Delhi. All these events
happened in Delhi, yet they missed the notice of the Union Home Minister or
should we say you feigned ignorance for reasons best known to you.

Earlier, your Party leader Digvijay Singh had also
made it a mission to air distorted versions on the division issue in the media boasting
of consensus and brushing aside opposition. What he was speaking was not the
actual version and our view point was put forth in the letter we sent to the
Prime Minister correcting him, in which we categorically reiterated our Party
stand. We wrote that there are no deviations in our stand and three Parties
YSRCP, MIM and CPM are opposing the division.

Despite knowing all these facts, being in the
Government, you have been imposing the CWC decision on us, at gun-point, like a
Congressman and this is not justifiable. You have been distorting the truth to
throttle the voice of those Parties that are opposing the bifurcation of the
State and imposing your (Congress) decision on the people.  You did not appoint an Official (Government)
Committee for fear of showcasing opposition to your move.

While taking a decision of such a magnitude, why
did you not seek clarifications from all Political Parties?

Being in the High Office of Home Ministry, how far
is it justified to rub your opinions on others by distorting facts to meet your
ends by misleading the people of the country?

Nearly 60 per cent of the people of the state are
on strike for the past 43 days protesting against the decision of the division
of the state and the Government has no concern.

Even while the State is united, we are not getting
water unless the needs of Maharashtra are met and Alamatti and Narayanpur dams
of Karnataka are filled up. Now if another State comes in between, where will
Srisailam project get the water from? Later, where will Nagarjunasagar get its
water from? There would be water disputes among people along the Krishna river
ayacut on a daily basis?

If you divide our State for a few votes and seats
in one region, there will be no drinking water from Kuppam to Srikakulam.
Congress is speaking of providing national status to Polavaram. If another
state comes in between, getting water to Polavaram is not that easy.

Previously, you have asked us to vacate Madras and
now you are asking us to vacate Hyderabad in 10 years. If we leave Hyderabad,
where will the children go for jobs? While 50 % of the revenue is generated
from Hyderabad, if that money is not available or if that is utilized for
building new capital, there will be no money to meet other expenses including
salaries to employees.

There will be no funds for the ongoing welfare
schemes and the ones to be launched in future. The future of the employees and
people living in Hyderabad will be in a quandary.

Though we have gas in our own State we are not
allowed to use it as the division deprives us from doing so. While crores of
people are agitating for the past 43 days demanding that they will be deprived
of water and capital city of Hyderabad, you have least concern.

On the other hand you have been misinterpreting
that there is consensus on the division process. Congress Party may gain some
seats and votes but the bifurcation process will play havoc with the lives of
people.

We are reiterating that you shun from the process
of bifurcation and leave the State united.

Please find enclosed copies of our letters written
to you and to the Prime Minister.

     1.  Letter submitted to Union Home Minister by
YSRCP at All Party Meet in Delhi (Dec 28, 2012)

     2. YSRCP hon. President Smt. YS VIjayamma’s
letter to Prime Minister (Aug 14, 2013) .

     3. YSRCP hon. President Smt. YS Vijayamma’s
letter to Union Home Minister (Sept 6, 2013)

                                                                            

Regards

Y.S. Vijayamma

















 

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