Narasimhan prefers to be priest than a politician

Hyderabad: What will ESL Narasimhan do when he would lay down his office as Governor of Telangana during the second week of September? "I will go back to my home state Tamil Nadu, enjoy wearing a dhoti, eat hot steaming idlis, crispy dosas and will spend quality time with my wife Vimala.

There is no question of me taking plunge into active politics, instead I would prefer to become a priest in the future," the outgoing Governor told media in an informal interaction with media on Tuesday.

Walking down the memory lane, Narasimhan who has achieved the distinction of being the longest serving Governor in the Telugu states said that as Governor he never abrogated his constitutional responsibilities and never favoured anyone. "I never took sides.

I never supported any political party and I treated every party and its leaders equally."

The most challenging task for him, he said, was maintaining a clear line regarding official duties and personal friendship with every leader who visited him at Raj Bhavan.

Narasimhan narrated how he dealt with the difficult situation during the Telangana movement when it was at its peak and the President rule imposed in two Telugu states of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh after the bifurcation.

He extolled the state police for maintaining restraint during Telangana struggle.

"Except tear-gas shells, not a single bullet was used in the entire T movement," he said. The Governor said he was heckled by Telangana forces while delivering speeches in the Assembly during the T struggle, but he displayed patience by keeping a smile on his face.

Recalling an incident Narasimhan said during the agitation for separate state when a reporter asked me on December 31 what will happen now, he said he had casually replied that January 1 would usher in and he was accused of being against formation of T state.

He said he faced several challenges in resolving post-bifurcation issues between AP and Telangana in an amicable way. Commenting on his relationship with various chief ministers during his long tenure in the united Andhra Pradesh and post bifurcation, he said, "All chief ministers are good. Only small small differences would be there."

He also spoke about the way he tried to resolve the contentious issues between the two Telugu states in an amicable manner. He said he would be going back as a happy person as all the chief ministers, leaders of political parties and the media too extended full cooperation to him.

He, however, expressed anguish over media invading into his privacy at times. Narasimhan said that visiting temples was part of his private life.

He felt hurt whenever his visit to temples had become headline story and the way media used to criticise him. He said he likes visiting holy places like Tirumala, Yadadri and Anajaneya Swamy temple at Khairatabad to pay obeisance.

As a parting advice, Narasimhan said stress will be there in every profession and the best stress buster is spending valuable time with the family every day. He said this is something which everyone should follow.