Twenty six years ago in Andhra Pradesh, NT Rama Rao (NTR) unseated a firmly-rooted Congress on the plank of ‘Atma Gouravam’ or ‘self-respect’ of Telugu people. It could not be more ironic that the people of Telangana, who helped NTR win the election, were soon reminded of their subjugation by a people who speak the same language. It was a random remark in the Assembly by the then Speaker Yanamala Ramakrishnudu, that the word Telangana was not to be uttered on the floor of the House, that revived their sense of betrayal and push for statehood.
“The 1969 movement for a separate state was spontaneous, based on discontent over backwardness. It was only in the 1980s and 90s that the conceptual work was done.
Newly-evoked literary works and music helped form a Telanganism,” says Narayana Allam, member of the Joint Action Committee on Telangana. This cultural identity for the region also became the basis for seeking statehood, as a permanentremedy for the backwardness perpetuated by successive governments.
A LIST OF INEQUITIES
Had the Mulki Rule, the Six-Point Formula or the GO 610 (which, ironically, was issued by a non-Telangana chief minister NTR) — all guaranteeing preferential representation for the people of Telangana in jobs — been implemented in time and in their true spirit, the regional imbalances would never have become such a big issue.
“Irrigation is one of our major grievances. In spite of major catchment areas of Krishna and Godavari being in Telangana, the region has been meted out a raw deal,” explains Professor K Jaya Shankar, Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) ideologue. “Plus education, industries, and jobs, of course. Out of the about 15 lakh jobs in the government establishments in the state, those occupied by Telanganas is less than 3 lakh.”
“And if Jalyagnam (a massive irrigation project launched by YSR) is implemented, Telangana will lose its share in the river water permanently,” adds Prof M Kodandaram, president of the Telangana Forum for Educated People.
“It is tragic that the Telangana people were really unaware of these inequities and discrimination until recently when some intellectuals started pointing out historical errors in policies. Those from Andhra bought out the fertile belts in agricultural lands along the irrigation canals and constantly harangued the Telangana people as being lazy with Nawabi ways. This led to a build-up of anger that we are ill-treated in our own land,” says Allam.
The attitude of the Telugu film industry, which shifted base from Chennai to Hyderabad after NTR came to power, compounded this sense of humiliation. The industry, comprising almost entirely of coastal Andhras, from artistes to producers, stereo-typified the villains in Telugu films as belonging to Telangana. The bad men have been depicted as speaking in Telangana slang, and as imbeciles who invariably get out-smarted by those from the coastal region. This continued in spite of several protests, and in spite of the fact that the Telangana region has produced one out of the only two Gyanpeeth award winners from the state — the poet Dr Narayana Reddy who also happens to be a popular film lyricist!
Added to this was the unwritten rule in all media publications that slang from Telangana, or for that matter Rayalaseema, was taboo and Telugu from the districts of Krishna and Guntur was the preferred language for both newspapers and electronic media.
It was in reaction to this milieu that a cultural rebellion spread through Telangana, leading to ostentatious celebration of essentially Telangana festivals like Bathukamma and Bonalu and a revival of literary works. Sometime last year, a district unit of the TRS, ‘counseled’ hoteliers to drop Andhra foods such as Idli Sambar from their menus and add Telangana foods such as Jonna Roti and Ragi Sankati. Lord Venkateswara and Durga were branded ‘Andhra gods’ although hotels were allowed to continue using their names on signboards.
The fight for a social and cultural identity dovetailed into a demand for inclusive development, and of just representation in jobs, called ‘koluvulu’ in Telangana Telugu. The latest flashpoint for koluvulu came during the recent police recruitment in Hyderabad.
And yet, no one was more surprised than the Telangana agitators at the sudden and unexpected yielding of the Congress party at the Centre. While opinions vary, the popular perception is that it was the student unrest that spread to the rural areas, as much as the fasting K Chandrasekhara Rao’s (KCR) sinking condition, that prompted the response.
Interestingly enough, most of the Telangana activists do not give much credit to either TRS or to its leader’s fast-unto-death. “Yes, he did act as one of the triggers but we are sure it was the populist turn to the agitation that got us this victory,” says Rajesh Kota, a key leader of the students’ Joint Action Committee.
It’s not without reason that the people are skeptical about the TRS. KCR, a man who was first attracted to the NTR’s TDP and continued in Chandra Babu Naidu’s TDP, has shown a propensity to resort to dramatic attempts to revive his fortunes whenever he is in dumps. Generally believed to have started TRS on the rebound after he was denied a ministerial berth under Naidu, KCR led a resignation drama last year by TRS leaders, leading to by-elections with just a few months to go for the 2009 general elections.
Neither then nor in this year’s general elections did TRS impress people and its strength has been significantly reduced.
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