While the Maharashtra government succeeded in its mission of sabotaging Telugu Desam Party leader Chandrababu Naidu's proposed visit to Babli by unceremoniously packing him off to Hyderabad, the victory, if at all, is only pyrrhic. Not only has Mr. Naidu gained enormous publicity in the process but has also emerged as a “Telugu victim” of Maharashtra's excesses. Heavens would not have fallen if he had been allowed to visit the controversial dam site.
J.S. Acharya,
Hyderabad
The article on the Babli row (OP-ED, July 22) was analytical and relevant. I fail to understand why the leader of the largest political party in Andhra Pradesh should troop to a neighbouring State, gathering his men and the media. Is not an aerial survey of the site enough to know what is happening?
Yalamarthy Subrahmanyeswara Rao,
Hyderabad
The Babli issue has caused unrest among the Telugu and the Marathi migrant labour in Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh. Lakhs of people from the north Telangana districts have migrated to Sholapur, Mumbai, Aurangabad, Nanded and Nagpur to work in the textile industry and at construction sites. Some of the families have lived there for decades. Similarly, many Maharashtrians have settled down in Hyderabad and other parts of Andhra Pradesh. People in the border villages of both States enjoy cordial relations. But the Babli issue has created tension among migrants. The Centre should intervene to settle the issue. Parties should keep the welfare of migrant workers in mind.
Polsani Sampath Rao,
Karimnagar
