In his vitriolic reaction to the Centre's letter to the Telangana government, Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao termed Modi as a 'fascist'.

Hyderabad: Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao has set himself on a collision course with the NDA-government at the Centre after terming Prime Minister Narendra Modi a 'fascist' and calling for a meeting of ‘like-minded’ chief ministers and political parties to challenge the Central government's efforts to 'usurp' the power of states. The trigger for the face off is the decision of the government to vest more powers in the Governor of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh in the administration of common capital of Hyderabad.

In his vitriolic reaction to the Friday's letter by the government of India to the Telangana government defining the powers of the Governor over police administration of Hyderabad, Cyberabad commissionerates and Ranga Reddy district police, as enshrined in the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act 2014, KCR termed Modi as a 'fascist'. He also instructed chief secretary Rajiv Sharma not only to write to the Union home ministry expressing the resentment over the Centre's attempt to tread on the toes of the state government, but also to mark copies of the letter to all chief ministers in the country.

The latest order from the Centre came at a time when the Telangana government is embarking on a blockbuster survey of 84 lakh families living in the state on a single day (19 August) with the help of over four lakh employees drawn from across all departments. KCR has been campaigning about the importance of this "monumental enumeration" as the benchmark for extending government schemes and benefits to the needy and deserving.

Though the state clarified that the survey would not touch upon the details of nativity or from where the family migrated to Telangana, critics of KCR see a "hidden agenda" behind it. Telugu Desam leaders from Andhra Pradesh said that it was an attempt to draw a line between the natives and non-natives of Telangana. AP Minister Ravella Kishore Babu went a step ahead and urged people to claim that they belong to Telanagana in the survey forms.

TRS government's adamant stand, which is termed as obstinate by the TDP and a few other parties, on the prospective denial of the fee reimbursement to students pursuing professional education on the basis of their nativity continues to simmer. It has jeopardized the fate of over 3.90 lakh students of both states as confusion continues to reign supreme.

What has irked KCR more in the entire episode is that the Centre’s reaction apparently has a trigger in the form of an appeal by the neighbouring Andhra Pradesh government to vest powers in the Governor in respect of police administration. The sequel to TDP’s behind-the-scene influence over the Centre came in the form of a letter from S Suresh Kumar, joint secretary in the Ministry of Home Affairs, suggesting that the Governor would have overriding powers on 13 different counts enlisted in the Section 8 of the AP Reorganisation Act, 2014, which include constitution of a Police Service Board with Telangana DGP, Commissioners of Police of Hyderabad and Cyberabad and Superintendent of Police of Ranga Reddy district, for the common capital area – the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC).

The Centre had, in fact, elicited the view of the Telangana government on business transaction rules a month ago and the state vehemently opposed any move to alter the rules that confer powers in the Governor.

Though in a tearing hurry, the Telangana government dispatched its response to the Centre. It did not mince words in stating that the Telangana government would not transfer its powers to the Governor in Hyderabad. Telangana wanted the Centre to honor the provisos of the Constitution. Telagana IT Minister KT Rama Rao sought to know why the Centre was poking its nose in the matters pertaining to the state. He felt that "a few encroachers and land-grabbers" were influencing the Centre. He urged the prime minister to reconsider the decision, as he had vast experience as a chief minister. Telangana Home Minister N Narasimha Reddy alleged that more powers to the Governor in the common capital was a result of a "conspiracy by Chandrababu Naidu and Venkaiah Naidu (Union Minister)".

BJP’s Telangana president G Kishan Reddy, however, said that these rules were incorporated by the erstwhile Congress-led UPA government and KCR thanked Sonia Gandhi personally for the reorganization of the state. He raised an interesting point on the objections raised by KCR saying that the BJP was implementing the law in toto and that it has no role whatsoever in defining the powers of the Governor.