Telangana celebrates September 17 with three different narratives

Telangana witnessed three parallel commemorations of September 17, the day Hyderabad State merged with India in 1948. While the Congress observed it as Praja Palana Dinotsavam, the BRS called it National Integration Day and the BJP marked it as Liberation Day.

Hyderabad: Telangana once again witnessed three parallel commemorations of September 17, the day the erstwhile Hyderabad State was merged with the Indian Union in 1948, with the Congress, the BRS and the BJP offering competing interpretations of the historic event.

The Congress-led State government observed the day as Telangana Praja Palana Dinotsavam. Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy hoisted the national flag at Public Gardens, framing the occasion as a celebration of people’s governance. Yet, the Congress party itself continued to describe it as Telangana Integration Day. At Gandhi Bhavan, TPCC president Mahesh Kumar Goud unfurled the tricolour, with several district units also sticking to the Integration Day nomenclature.

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The Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS), which had formalised the practice of celebrating National Integration Day during its tenure, carried forward the same legacy this year. Party working president KT Rama Rao hoisted the national flag at Telangana Bhavan and recalled the sacrifices of martyrs, linking the past struggles to current political battles.

The BJP stuck to the Centre’s line, celebrating Telangana Liberation Day. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh led the official programme at Secunderabad’s Parade Ground, where he unfurled the national flag. Union Ministers Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, G Kishan Reddy, Bandi Sanjay Kumar and several State leaders participated, reiterating that the day marked liberation from the Nizam’s rule.