New Delhi: The divided state of Andhra Pradesh is going to polls (both state Assembly and Lok Sabha) as one state, for the last time. Since the Central Government has fixed June 2 as the appointed date for the state of Telangana, officially the undivided state of Andhra Pradesh will remain on the papers till that date. Even though, the Election Commission of India (ECI) is holding the elections to one state - the AP, it has divided the schedule into two parts. Telangana will go to polls on April 30 and Seemandhra will go to polls on May 7.
Announcing the election schedule in New Delhi, the Chief Election Commissioner of India (CEC) VS Sampath said, "We are holding elections to the state of AP. Once the state of Telangana comes into existence on June 2, the MLAs from that state will go to Telangana. It will be a seamless process. There will be no problem at all."
According to the poll schedule, people from Telangana will vote for both the state Assembly and the Lok Sabha on April 30. For the first time, the people of Telangana will be voting for their own state assembly, though the state will come into existence only on June 2. Both states will get a new government on June 2. The party/alliance winning the largest number of seats in each state Assembly will come to power.
The people of Andhra Pradesh (Seemandhra) are voting on May 7. For both, going to polls as one state is just a technical matter and calling it one state makes no sense for both the states.
Telangana has 17 Lok Sabha seats and 119 Assembly seats. It also includes Hyderabad and Secundarabad. According to CNN-IBN, Lokniti and CSDS election tracker, the TRS is ahead in the Assembly polls and the Congress is slightly ahead of the TRS in the Lok Sabha polls. The TRS has ruled out a merger with the Congress. It is not even showing much interest in a pre-poll alliance. According to top sources the TRS is keeping all its options open till the last minute. The TRS chief K Chandrashekhara Rao is eyeing the post of the first CM of Telangana. He firmly believes that the credit of getting statehood for Telangana must go only to him.
The Congress in charge of AP Digvijaya Singh said, "Happy on 2nd June, the dream of statehood for Telangana will come true, now must fulfill promises made to Telangana and Seemandhra."
In Andhra Pradesh, the situation is different. The YSRCP is fighting a big battle with the TDP. According to CNN-IBN, Lokniti, CSDS election tracker, YS Jaganmohan Reddy led the YSRCP is ahead of all others here. The TDP led by former CM N Chandrababu Naidu is also in the close race. The Congress which is facing the wrath of the people for dividing the state is staring at a bleak future here.
Andhra Pradesh has 25 Lok Sabha seats and 175 Assembly seats. Both the states will function from Hyderabad for the next 10 years. If the AP government builds a new capital before that, it can shift the capital from Hyderabad to a place inside the state.
Till the elections get over and June 2, the state of Andhra Pradesh will be one state, at least on the paper.
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