Hyderabad set to cease as joint capital after June 2 amid conflicting claims

Vijayawada: Even before expiry of tenure to continue Hyderabad as the joint capital on June 2, 2024, Andhra Pradesh has given up its right over the most happening city in the two Telugu-speaking States due to a variety of reasons.

It is alleged that TDP national president N Chandrababu Naidu hurriedly shifted the employees and all the offices of AP from Hyderabad in 2015 following the 'vote for note' scam. In the alleged scam, both Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy, then a protege of Naidu and the TDP chief were accused of making payments to induce a nominated MLC to cast vote in support of their party in the elections to the Legislative Council of Telangana.

Naidu, as the first Chief Minister of AP, post-bifurcation declared Amaravati as the capital of the new State on October 22, 2015. He had acquired over 30,000 acres of Krishna Delta land from the farmers under the Land Pooling Scheme to develop what he declared a 'people's capital and futuristic city' at Amaravati.

After a change in government in 2019, YSRCP president and Naidu's successor YS Jagan Mohan Reddy declared formation of three capitals viz. Visakhapatnam as executive capital, Amaravati as legislative capital and Kurnool as judicial capital as part of his decentralisation plan. The Special Leave Petition of the YSRCP Government against the AP High Court's March 3, 2022 directive is pending before the Supreme Court.

As a run-up to the 2024 simultaneous elections to the Assembly and Lok Sabha, TDP, which is now an ally of National Democratic Alliance, promised to develop Amaravati as the single capital of AP, whereas YSRCP stuck to its stand of creating three capitals and taking oath in Visakhapatnam if elected to power. Hence, the fate of Amaravati and Visakhapatnam depends on poll outcome.

Now with the deadline for the end of Hyderabad as joint capital of Telangana and AP as per Section 5 of AP Reorganisation Act, 2024, (which says the joint capital shall continue for 10 years till June 2, 2024), is coming to a close, in next few days.

The claim over Hyderabad has taken several twists and turns with YSRCP general secretary and MP YV Subba Reddy in February retracted a statement soon after saying in February that Hyderabad should continue as joint capital beyond 10 years.

Due to enforcement of model code of conduct, the Central Election Commission while giving conditional permission to the Congress Government in Telangana to hold Cabinet meetings on May 20, restricted it from taking any decision on post-bifurcation issues pending between the two States.

AP and Telangana have simmering differences over sharing of Krishna waters and payment of dues towards power supply by the power utilities. The Jagan Mohan Reddy-led government several times had asked the Centre to direct Telangana to clear power dues worth Rs 6,757 crore. On the other hand, the Revanth Reddy-led government is keen on taking over Lake View Guest House and other prime properties, which were allotted to AP as part of making Hyderabad as the joint capital.

In the general elections, Bharat Rashtra Samiti, the main Opposition in Telangana, had alleged that the BJP, which has aligned with TDP in AP, has plans to make Hyderabad an Union Territory. BRS working president KT Rama Rao has been asking voters to be aware of BJP's plans to take Hyderabad from Telangana whereas another BRS leader T Harish Rao, nephew of former Chief Minister K Chandrasekhara Rao, that both Revanth Reddy and his 'former boss' Chandrababu Naidu have a tacit understanding to continue Hyderabad as joint capital beyond 10 years.