Minister snubs gov, sends babu
Minister said he was busy briefing CM
Transport minister Puvvada Ajay Kumar on Thursday snubbed Governor Tamilisai Soundarajan when she telephoned to take stock of the ongoing strike of Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (RTC) workers, who have been on strike since October 4.
The minister deputed a bureaucrat, principal secretary Rajiv Sharma, instead to Raj Bhavan.
The minister, Raj Bhavan sources said, told the Governor he was unable to visit as he was engaged in briefing Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao on the strike. The minister told the Governor that he was sending his bureaucrat to brief her on the situation.
The Governor let the minister know that she wanted to discuss the issues raised by the RTC workers so as to find solutions to their demands.
When Mr Rajiv Sharma visited and met the Governor, she brought to his notice the fact that Raj Bhavan had received several representations from the RTC trade unions as well as from opposition parties. These pertained to the strike and also to the government’s suspected move to privatise RTC properties across the state.
The Governor reportedly enquired about alternate arrangements made for public transportation.
Mr Rajiv Sharma explained the alternate arrangements and the steps taken to make all services of the RTC fully operational. He also spoke to her about the case pending before the High Court with regard to the RTC strike.
The Road Transport Corporation Joint Action Committee convener Ashvatthama Reddy on Thursday alleged that his phone was being tapped along with the phones of some TRS MLAs and leaders of opposition parties who are sympathetic to the RTC strike.
Making it clear that the RTC employees are ready for talks, he said that talks will only be held with the ministers who had taken part in the Telangana agitation and not with other ministers.
Speaking to the press after the meeting with the RTC trade union leaders and also with leaders of the opposition parties at the Telangana Mazdoor Union office on Thursday, Mr Reddy said, “The Chief Minister’s post is not permanent. Several leaders held the chair and have gone when the people rejected them.”
He said that the ruling party MLAs are sympathetic to the RTC workers but fear to come out openly in their support. He said two TRS MLAs have spoken to him and extended their support. He refused to divulge the names of the two legislators and said that as his phone is being tapped other MLAs are scared of talking to him.
Ashvatthama Reddy cautioned that if the RTC problem is not resolved, then the 1994 crisis that the then Telugu Desam government faced will be repeated in the TRS government.
He warned that there will be severe consequences if the chief minister tries to suppress the workers' protests.
He requested ministers T. Harish Rao, Etala Rajender and Jagadish Reddy to break the silence and come out openly to resolve the RTC staff demands.
He said that intellectuals should not remain silent about t h e genuine issues of employees as they have a bigger impact on society.
As the strike entered the 14th day and also in view of the hearing of the case against the strike in the High Court on Friday, Mr Reddy said trade union leaders and opposition leaders have reviewed the case.