KCR wanted T-settlers out

Hyderabad

April 19: The Telangana Rashtra Samiti president, Mr K Chandrasekhar Rao’s denial notwithstanding, he has always spoken of driving out people from coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema if Telangana is made a state.
Mr Rao made scores of statements whipping up regional feelings. He has given a call to “settlers” — people from other regions of the state — to quit Telangana.
Most famously, Mr Rao questioned the sanctity of Telugu Talli, Mother Telugu, wondering where she had come from. “Evani Telugu Talli, ekkadi Telugu Talli (whose Telugu Talli is she, where has she come from),” Mr Rao said on October 5, 2006 in Hyderabad.
Telugu Talli is commonly accepted as the embodiment of Telugu culture, tradition, land and values. After Mr Rao’s attack, the TRS created Telangana Talli and installed statues in Telangana.
The TRS had threatened hotels offering “Andhra meals,” a common enough term for a wholesome meal. The party wanted the eateries to offer “Telangana meals” instead.
Mr Rao supported the agitation in June 2008 and issued instructions to hoteliers to remove food items identified with Andhra like idli, sambar and introduce ragi sankati and jonna rottelu, typical Telangana items.
As recently as on February 17, 2009, at Mahbubnagar said corporate schools and colleges run by people from Andhra would be closed if Telangana became a state.
“Capitalists of Andhra region have established these institutes on the pretext of providing quality education. They are exploiting parents in Telangana region,” Mr Rao said.
“Because of these institutions, local unemployed post-graduates, who set up coaching centres have been hit. We will close down all corporate educational centres set up by Andhraites,” Mr Rao had said.
The same day he declared at a public meeting in Shadnagar that when Telangana State is formed, he would not allow investments from non-Telangana regions unless they promised to give 70 per cent of the jobs to Telanganites.
At a meeting on June 29, 2008. Mr Rao talked about exploitation by “Andhra rulers.”
He described the Chief Minister, Mr Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy, as “jala donga (water thief),” a reference to certain water projects that fed water to Rayalaseema.
He alleged that people from coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema were exploiting the natural resources of Telangana like water and minerals.

Source : Deccan Chronicle