Last modified: 2009-06-06 by ian macdonald
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"Telangana is a region in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It more or less
corresponds to that portion of the state which was previously part of the
princely state of Hyderabad. The region lies on the
Deccan plateau to the west of the Eastern Ghats range, and includes the
northwestern interior districts of Warangal, Adilabad, Khammam, Mahabubnagar,
Nalgonda, Rangareddy, Karimnagar, Nizamabad, Medak, and the state capital,
Hyderabad. The Krishna and Godavari rivers flow through the region from west to
east.
Telangana region was mentioned in the Mahabharata as the Telinga
Kingdom which said to be inhabited by the tribe known as Telavana and said to
have fought on the Pandava side in the great war of Mahabharata. It is also
evident from the fact that there is Pandavula Guhalu in Warangal
district(wherein Pandavas spent their life in exile (Lakkha Gruham)). And, in
Treta yuga, it is believed that Lord Sri Rama along with his consort Sita Devi
and brother Lakshmana, spent their life in exile at Parnashala on the banks of
Godavari river which is about 25 km from Bhadrachalam in Khammam District of
Telangana.
Telangana region has been ruled by many great dynasties like
Sathavahanas, Chalukyas, Kakatiyas. Telangana came under Muslim rule in 14th
century for the first time by Delhi Sultanate followed by Bahmanis, Qutb Shahis
and Mughals. As the Mughal Empire began to disintegrate in the early 18th
century, the Muslim Asafjahi dynasty established a separate state known as Hyderabad.
Later Hyderabad entered into a treaty of subsidiary alliance with the British
Empire, and was the largest and most populous princely state in India. Telangana
was never under direct British rule, unlike Coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema
regions of Andhra Pradesh, which were part of British India's Madras Presidency.
India became independent from the British Empire in 1947. The Nizam of
Hyderabad wanted to retain his independence from India, but his state of
Hyderabad was forced to become part of India in september 17 of 1948 as the
Hyderabad State. When India became independent, the Telugu-speaking people
(although Urdu is spoken in some parts of Telangana districts) were distributed
in about 22 districts; 9 of them in the Telangana region of Nizam's Dominions
(Hyderabad State), 12 in the Madras Presidency and one in French-controlled
Yanam. Andhra State was the first state in India that has been formed on a
purely linguistic basis by carving it out from Madras State in 1953. Andhra
State was later merged with Telugu speaking area of Hyderabad State (Telangana),
to create Andhra Pradesh state in 1956.
In December 1953, Prime Minister
Jawaharlal Nehru appointed the States Reorganization Commission to prepare for
the creation of states on linguistic lines. This was headed by Justice Fazal Ali
and the commission itself was also known as the Fazal Ali Commission. The
efforts of this commission was overseen by Govind Ballabh Pant, who served as
Home Minister from December 1954. The commission created a report in 1955
recommending the reorganization of India's states. The States Reorganization
Commission (SRC) was not in favour of merging the Telangana region with the then
Andhra state. Para 382 of States Reorganization Commission Report (SRC) said
"..opinion in Andhra is overwhelmingly in favour of the larger unit, public
opinion in Telangana has still to crystallize itself". The concerns of
Telanganas were manifold. The region had a less developed economy than Andhra,
but a larger revenue base (mostly because it taxed rather than prohibited
alcoholic beverages), which Telanganas feared might be diverted for use in
Andhra. They also feared that planned dam projects on the Krishna and Godavari
rivers would not benefit Telangana proportionately even though Telanganas
controlled the headwaters of the rivers. Telanganas feared too that the people
of Andhra would have the advantage in jobs, particularly in government and
education. Para 386 of States Reorganization Commission Report (SRC) said "After
taking all these factors into consideration we have come to the conclusions that
it will be in the interests of Andhra as well as Telangana area is to constitute
into a separate State, which may be known as the Hyderabad State with provision
for its unification with Andhra after the general elections likely to be held in
or about 1961 if by a two thirds majority the legislature of the residency
Hyderabad State expresses itself in favor of such unification." The central
government decided to ignore the SRC recommendations and established unified
Andhra Pradesh on November 1, 1956. However, a "Gentlemen's agreement" provided
reassurances to the Telangana people.
In the following years after the
formation of Andhra Pradesh state, however, the Telangana people had a number of
complaints about how the agreements and guarantees were implemented. Discontent
with the 1956 Gentleman's agreement intensified in January 1969 when the
guarantees that had been agreed on were supposed to lapse. Student agitation for
the continuation of the agreement began at Osmania University in Hyderabad and
spread to other parts of the region. Government employees and opposition members
of the state legislative assembly swiftly threatened "direct action" in support
of the students. This movement, also known as Jai Telangana movement, led to
widespread violence and deaths of hundreds of people and students of this
Telangana region. Approximately 360 students gave their lives in this movement.
Although the Congress faced dissension within its ranks, its leadership stood
against additional linguistic states, which were regarded as "anti-national." As
a result, defectors from the Congress, led by M. Chenna Reddy, founded the
Telangana People's Association (Telangana Praja Samithi). Despite electoral
successes, however, some of the new party leaders gave up their agitation in
September 1971 and, much to the disgust of many separatists, rejoined the safer
political haven of the Congress ranks.
The emotions and forces generated
by the movement were not strong enough, however, for a continuing drive for a
separate state until 1990s when Bharatiya Janata Party,
promised a separate Telangana state if they came to power. But the BJP could not
create a separate Telangana state because of the opposition from its coalition
partner, Telugu Desam Party. These developments brought new life into the
separatist Telangana movement by year 2000. Congress party MLAs from the
Telangana region, supported a separate Telangana state and formed the Telangana
Congress Legislators Forum. In another development, a new party called Telangana
Rashtra Samithi (or TRS) was formed with the single agenda of creating a
separate Telangana state, with Hyderabad as its capital. Proponents of a
separate Telangana state feel .. all the agreements, accords, formulas, plans
and assurances on the floor of legislature and Lok Sabha, in last 50+ years,
could not be honoured and Telangana was forced to remain neglected, exploited
and backward. The experiment to remain as one State proved to be a futile
exercise and therefore, separation is found to be the best solution.
In
2004, for Assembly and Parliament elections, the Congress party and the TRS had
an electoral alliance in the Telangana region with the promise of a separate
Telangana State. Congress came to power in the state and formed a coalition
government at the centre. TRS joined the coalition government in 2004 and was
successful in making a separate Telangana state a part of the common minimum
program (CMP) of the coalition government. In September 2006 TRS withdrew
support for the Congress led coalition government at the centre on the grounds
of indecision by the government over the delivery of its electoral promise to
create Telangana. In December 2006, the TRS won the by-election to the
Karimnagar parliamentary constituency, which is considered by many as a
referendum on a Telangana state, with a record margin. There was lot of pressure
on the Congress party to create a Telangana state in 2008.
All TRS
legislators in Parliament and in State (4MPs, 16MLAs, 3MLCs) resigned in the 1st
week of March 2008 and forced by-elections which can be viewed as a referendum
on a Telangana state, to increase the pressure on Congress party, and to
intensify the movement. By-elections for the 16 MLA seats, 4 MP seats were held
May 29, 2008. During the election campaign the TRS party said it is a referendum
on a Telangana state but both Congress and TDP parties said it is not a
referendum on Telangana and also said that they are not opposed to the formation
of Telangana state. To the disappointment of Telangana proponents TRS retained
only 7 out of 16 MLA seats and 2 out of 4 MP seats after the by-elections.
Telangana proponents are also happy that all major parties in the state said
that they are not opposed to the formation of separate Telangana state. In June
2008, Devender Goud, who is considered number two in the TDP, a politbureau
member and Deputy Leader of the Telugu Desam Legislature Party, resigned from
the party saying he would devote his time and energy to the formation of a
separate Telangana state. In July 2008, Mr Goud along with some other leaders
like Mr. E Peddi Reddy formed a new party called Nava Telangana Praja Party. On
9 October 2008, in a historical turnaround from its 26-year history TDP
announced its support for the creation of Telengana.
The Nava Telangana
Party, led by the former home minister of Andhra Pradesh, T Devender Goud,
declared Telangana as a separate province within India on November 2, 2008.
Konda Laxman Bapuji announced that "We solemnly declare statehood for Telangana
on November 2, 2008." Goud released ten pigeons in the air symbolising the ten
districts of the region, while he also unfurled the national flag on the
occasion. Along with his party activists he was later arrested when they tried
to barge into the Andhra Pradesh Secretariat to change the name plate from
Andhra Pradesh to Telangana. A scuffle then followed between between the police
and the NTP workers before the party workers were taken to the Chikkadapalli
police station. Other NTP workers soon descended on the scene and staged a
dharna clarification needed] to protest against the arrest.
Ahead of the
2009 General Elections in India all the major parties in AP supported Telangana
state. Congress still says it is committed to Telangana statehood. But it does
not have convinsing answer when it asked why it could not create Telangana state
in last 5years. Also it claims muslim minorities are opposed to creation of
separate state. TDP promised to work for Telangana statehood. TRS joined the
Mahakutami (or grand alliance) with TDP and left parties to defeat congress
party for cheating Telangana people on statehood. Praja Rajyam Party(PRP), newly
founded by film star Chiranjeevi, too supports Telangana statehood. NTP merged
with PRP after it realized that there is not enough political space for two
sub-regional Telangana parties with Telananga statehood as main agenda. The BJP
again announced their policy of having smaller states and will create 2 more
states Telangana and Gorkhaland if they win the election. They also said that
smaller states are better governed and developed."
Spource:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Telangana.
![[Telangana]](../images/i/in-telen.gif)
image by
Chrystian
Kretowicz, 13 April 2009