Rejig aimed at culling turf war?

Warangal: The renaming of Warangal Urban and Rural districts has anything to do with the political turf war? The answer seems to be 'yes', if one goes by the circumstances and the opinion expressed by a cross section of people. The split of Warangal city that drew a hell lot of a criticism in 2016 is back again reopening old wounds with the Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao accepting to the TRS people's representatives' demand for renaming Warangal Urban and Rural districts as Hanamkonda and Warangal respectively.

"It's a dead and buried idea. The people vociferously opposed the move when the government split Warangal city into Urban and Rural. Now, it came up with the idea of renaming them. It's difficult to imagine Warangal and Hanamkonda as two entities that intertwined with each other historically and emotionally," Forum for Better Warangal president Pulluru Sudhakar told The Hans India.

It's more of politics rather than people's choice. Since the leaders started to see Warangal city as two rival factions – East and West – for their political ascendency, they have been lobbying with the CMO for the renaming of Urban and Rural districts by shuffling a few mandals vice versa.

Apart from the political turf war, the disconnect between the ruling party leaders who are tugging in different directions pressing their demand for Warangal Rural district's headquarters has also added fuel to the demand of reshuffling of the district, he said. It's better to protect the historical and cultural heritage of the region by merging Urban and Rural districts, Pulluru Sudhakar demanded.

"People will have to keep changing their district. Sometime ago, I belonged to Warangal district, now Warangal Urban and shortly it will change to Hanamkonda district. In future, KCR will have to tell my district name," DCC president Naini Rajender Reddy said, sarcastically, stating that it reminds him of Tughlaq rule.

"The ruling party leaders who have vested interests are trying to impose their ideas on people in Warangal," CPI State Secretariat member Thakkallapally Srinivas Rao said, demanding the Panchayat Raj Minister Errabelli Dayakar Rao to disclose which section of people sought the renaming of districts. Splitting Warangal into smithereens, the Chief Minister wants to enhance the demeanour of his native Siddipet, he alleged.

BJP Warangal Urban district president Rao Padma questioned the rationale behind renaming of the districts. "Hanamkonda, the first capital of the Kakatiyas, has an inseparable bond with Warangal," Padma said.