After IT minister Komatireddy Venkatreddy's
comments on Sunday against CM Rosaiah that the latter was acting more like a CM of the Andhra region than the CM of the entire state earned him the Congress High Command's ire and a terse showcause notice, he appeared pretty unrepentant.
Saying that he received the notice and will respond tomorrow, and refusing to withdraw his resignation for now, the minister said that he only spoke voicing the sentiments of the Telangana populace, and did not make any personal comments on the CM.
He wondered how come no Congress leader of Seemandhra received such a notice for defying the High Command when the United Andhra Pradesh movement was at its peak, when they had all threatened the High Command, too. He also asked how come no notices were served against many Congress leaders of the area who at that time accused Home Minister Sabitha Indra Reddy of being partial to the Telangana cause and making the police act against Samaikandhra protestors.
Many Telangana leaders have started rallying around Komatireddy, who is emerging as a key figure of the movement with his virulent vehemence and his verbosity. Jana Reddy and Damodar Reddy warned of severe consequences if action was taken against Komatireddy for his comments. Aleru Congress MLA Bhikshamayya Goud has made similar accusations against Rosaiah - that he is acting like the CM of the Andhra region.
And Harish Rao of the TRS said that the Congress was plotting to throw Komatireddy out, and that if he goes, all Telangana ministers will resign. If you are wondering how he speaks for all of them, join the club.
The Telangana movement meanwhile appears to have slowly settled at a lower octave - increasing concerns about students losing an academic year, no action point to inflammate passions (the Jan 5 meeting call, without saying anything for or against separate statehood, has doused passions for the time being), loss of income and fatigue are said to be steadily creeping in. Today saw a call by Kakatiya University for a bandh of all educational institutions, a solitary item to make the news.