On December 10, 1970, the A. P. High Court passed a judgment,
reversing its prior verdict, that the Mulki rules are legal. CM Brahmananda
Reddy promptly announced that he would implement the Mulki rules in
compliance with the high court’s judgment.
Around this time, the political scene at the center was changing rapidly.
Indira Gandhi and her young cohort’s aggressive adoption of socialism put
Gandhi at odds with the older generation leaders that believed in a more
moderate approach. Smt. Gandhi’s bank nationalization turned out to be
the last straw. The Congress Party split in two, and Gandhi did not have the
majority in the Parliament to continue as the PM. As a result, the Loksabha
mid-term elections were around the corner. To strengthen her position for the
upcoming elections, Mrs. Gandhi expressed renewed interest to resolve the
Telangana crisis.
By winning two by-elections with a landslide margin, Chenna Reddy
succeeded in sending a message to the PM that he was a force to reckon with.
On January 1, 1971, PM Gandhi, CM Brahmananda Reddy, and TPS leader
Chenna Reddy met face-to-face for 90 minutes. It became clear during the
discussions that state division was not acceptable to the PM, and she did not
want TPS to contest the elections by themselves.
Indira Gandhi therefore made an offer that was by far the most she had
ever offered since the agitation for Telangana started. She offered Chenna
Reddy the following:
• TPS should not contest the Congress Party in the Loksabha
elections.
• Allow five years of time until 1977 for the eight-point formula to
affect the region.
• In the year 1977, if two-thirds of the Nizam Telangana legislators
supported separation, the center would agree to the formation of
the Telangana state.
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