Posted: Updated – 12:02 PM, Sunday – October 30
Hyderabad: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is citing the legacy of Telangana’s Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel to build a strong narrative for next year’s parliamentary elections.
The Saffron Party is actively working to highlight the key role India’s first Home Minister played when the former Hyderabad state joined the Indian Union.
On September 17, the central government led by the BJP officially organized the “Hyderabad Liberation Day” celebration in Hyderabad. Federal Home Minister Amit Shah, dubbed “Abhinav Sardar” by the BJP, raised the national flag and paid tribute to the parade organized by the United Culture Ministry.
Consists of Telangana and parts of present-day Maharashtra and Karnataka after India’s military operation “Operation Polo” (commonly known as “Operation Police”) on September 17, 1948 The state of Hyderabad became part of India.
The centre invited chief ministers from all three states to major official events. The move was apparently aimed at embarrassing the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) government, which has been rejecting the BJP’s request to officially celebrate the day.
The parade was attended by Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, while Karnataka was represented by a cabinet minister.
Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao (KCR) raises the tricolour flag during a parallel “Telangana National Integration Day” celebration organised by the state government, which is seen as the BJP dying Political trick.
While staying away from the centrally organised celebrations in line with the BJP ideology, the KCR government organised its own celebrations to counter the saffron party.
Claiming that the BJP representatives divided the people in the name of celebration, the KCR claimed that the TRS wanted to unite the people.
The BJP is still claiming victory in its ongoing campaign as it is the first official celebration to be organised on September 17.
The All India Parliament (AIMIM), the friendly party of TRS, is also celebrating 17th September as National Integration Day.
This development is significant as the BJP has been targeting KCR for not officially celebrating the day due to pressure from AIMIM.
The party led by Asaduddin Owaisi has always believed that there is only one Independence Day for the entire country, so there is no need to celebrate it alone in Telangana.
For the past two decades, the BJP has been calling for the day to be officially celebrated as it has in some parts of Maharashtra and Karnataka.
Like the previous Congress government in undivided Andhra Pradesh and the Telugu Desam Party (TDP), the TRS government in Telangana has rejected a formal celebration of the day given the reservations of AIMIM and other Muslim groups. Require.
The BJP has been aggressively pushing for official celebrations as a matter of potential community polarisation. At every public meeting, Amit Shah and other central leaders of the BJP slammed the KCR for not officially celebrating September 17 for fear of AIMIM, and pledged that if voted to power in 2023, The BJP will celebrate Emancipation Day in a proper way.
“Let the BJP take power in Telangana, and we will officially celebrate this day with a grand gesture,” Shah told a public meeting in Munugord in August.
The BJP leader also singled out Sardar Patel in his speech and claimed that Hyderabad became part of India thanks to Iron Man’s steadfast stance.
“Had it not been for Sardar Patel, Hyderabad may have taken many more years to be liberated. Sardar Patel knows that as long as the Razakars of Nizam cannot be defeated, Akhand Bharat’s dream will not come true,” Amit Shah on month of celebrations.
He praised Sardar Patel for launching Operation Polo against Nizam’s army and Razakars to make Hyderabad part of India. Shah recalled that even after India’s independence, there were no celebrations in the state of Hyderabad at the time, and for 13 months, people were being repressed by Razakha.
The Union Home Minister, who conducted an in-depth study of TRS, said some parties were ashamed to call September 17 Hyderabad Liberation Day because they were still worried about Razakars.
The federal interior minister said it was unfortunate that those in power for 75 years were afraid to celebrate Emancipation Day because they voted bank politics.
The Razakars, a militia formed by Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (MIM) leader Syed Qasim Razvi, committed atrocities against those who wanted Hyderabad to join India.
Political parties in the post-1948 state of Hyderabad and the later united state of Andhra Pradesh never organised any official celebrations to avoid any controversy over the reservations of the Muslim community due to the massacre of Muslims following a “police operation”.
The government-appointed Sandrall Commission to report on the post-merger Hyderabad situation found mass violence against ordinary Muslims. According to the report, between 27,000 and 40,000 Muslims were massacred.
This time, as a strategic move against the BJP, AIMIM organized the National Integration Day to highlight Hindus and Muslims as advocates for a united India under a democratic and secular government, as reflected in the Sandral Commission report That way.
The TRS also used the opportunity to push back against the BJP to advance its divisive agenda of narrow political interests. TRS leaders slammed the Saffron Party for giving September 17 a public colour to divide the people.
When Amit Shah raised the flag in Hyderabad to mark Hyderabad Liberation Day, TRS working chairman KT Rama Rao claimed he came to divide the people while Sardar Patel united them.
“74 years ago, a Union Home Minister came to unite the people of Telangana and integrate them into the Union of India. Today, a Union Home Minister came to divide and bully the people of Telangana and its state government,” TRS The leader tweeted.