Pro-Telangana supporters celebrate

Supporters of Telangana celebrated the news and many of them flocked to the Nizam Institute of Medical Sciences (NIMS) here where Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) chief K Chandrasekhara Rao is kept under observation.

Chandrasekhara Rao on Wednesday night broke his 11-day-old hunger strike after the Centre accepted his demand for a separate Telangana state.

Rao broke his fast after accepting a glass of juice from TRS ideologue Jayashankar at NIMS shortly after midnight.

With tears in his eyes, a frail-looking Rao said in a feeble voice that he was thankful to Congress President Sonia Gandhi, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Leader of  Opposition L K Advani and leaders of all other political parties for supporting the cause of Telangana statehood.

Slogans like “Hail KCR, hail Telangana” were raised as the supporters marched towards NIMS dancing, singing and bursting crackers.

Senior TRS leaders  expect Chief Minister K Rosaiah to come over to formally inform Rao about the latest development. The Centre’s decision was taken at a late night meeting Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had with Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister K Rosaiah after two rounds of consultations in the Congress Core Committee with Sonia Gandhi and senior cabinet colleagues.

Earlier, the Telangana region of Andhra Pradesh was on the boil on Wednesday as massive protests demanding separate statehood and the fast-unto-death by K Chandrasekhara Rao entered the 11th day. Doctors said Rao was in a serious condition.
Prohibitory orders under Section 144 banning assembly of five or more  people were clamped down on Hyderabad and the other nine districts of the region, as thousands of police and paramilitary forces were mobilised to foil a march to the state Assembly planned by students and TRS activists in Hyderabad on Thursday.

Police arrested about 2,200 people across the region as street protests by thousands of TRS, BJP and CPI activists as well as students, employees, industrial workers, lawyers and others raged.

Three more people committed suicide in support of the demand for a separate state, taking the toll to 25 since the TRS chief launched his fast. Meanwhile, a police official, Nalini, resigned from her job to express her solidarity with the Telangana movement.