President Pranab Mukherjee received the first copy of the book Uniki’(identity), penned by Maharashtra Governor and former BJP leader Ch Vidyasagar Rao, from Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao.
The Chief Minister released the book and handed over the first copy to the President at a glittering function organised by the Prathima Foundation. Uniki is a compilation of essays written by Vidyasagar Rao over a span of four decades in various regional newspapers on a variety of topics including separate statehood for Telangana.
Speaking on the occasion, Pranab Mukherjee said he was happy to receive the first copy of the book and congratulated Vidyasagar Rao for bringing out a compilation of writings and reflections on his life and experiences. The book also includes stories and poems written by Vidyasagar Rao, while he was imprisoned at the central prison in Warangal during the Emergency. “The title of the book Uniki, which means identity, evokes a philosophical view of the issues and events covered in this book,” the President observed. Pranab Mukherjee also recalled his association with Vidyasagar Rao since the early days of the latter’s illustrious parliamentary career and when he served as Minister of State for Home, Industries and Commerce in the Cabinet of Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
The President recalled that when Vidyasagar Rao was in the Opposition, he had piloted a private member’s bill seeking stringent punishment for people practising bigamy. Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao also said that everyone would try to prove his identity (Uniki) and Telangana too had struggled for six long decades to prove its identity and finally realised its dream of statehood.
Vidyasagar Rao shared the memories of his association with former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
Governor of AP and Telangana ESL Narasimhan, Union Minister of State for Labour and Employment Bandaru Dattatreya, Telangana Opposition leader K Jana Reddy and Prathima Foundation chairman V Srinivasa Rao were also present.
Source: The New Indian Express