Telangana Guv likely to intervene to resolve matters amicably

Hyderabad: Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan may not only intervene in the ongoing RTC strike but may also look into allegations by opposition parties that the TRS government is planning to lease out RTC properties to private persons.

The Governor went to Delhi on Tuesday, met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah, and returned to Hyderabad the same night. After she returned, a BJP delegation, led by state chief K. Laxman, asked her to intervene in the strike.

The Governor's meeting with the BJP soon after her return has assumed significance in the light of reports that she submitted a report on the RTC strike to Modi and Shah in Delhi and apprised them of the situation.

BJP sources said the Governor also explained the allegations against the state government of trying to privatize the RTC.

RTC joint action committee convener Ashva-tthama Reddy also said the Governor was enquiring about the RTC's properties.

Mr Laxman, after his meeting, told the media that he “met the Governor and requested her to intervene and direct government to halt the process of leasing RTC lands to private parties.”

The RTC has about 1,500 acres of prime property across the state, at a conservatively estimated value of `80,000 crore. He said the state government was attempting to lease 10 acres at RTC crossroads for 33 years, and it has handed four acres in Warangal worth Rs 76 crore to ruling party leaders.

He told the Governor that RTC employees are on strike for 12 days but the government has made no effort to address their issues.