During the bifurcation of the State, the Congress took care to do justice to the Andhra region, even while carving out Telangana, fulfilling the “aspirations and a long-pending demand of the people of the region

Hyderabad has always had cosmopolitan culture, with people from different parts of the country living here, speaking different languages, embracing different religions. The Seemandhra brethren are no exception. It is a sin to call them Settlers; they are all Telanganites. Traditionally, Hyderabad is the place of cultural, communal, religious and regional harmony. We have different communities and within the communities, different castes of people living in well-designated localities by their names. Tamilians from Tamil Nadu and Sikhs from Punjab live in various parts of the city, including a place called Sikh Village. Gurdwaras are very well-sanctified and preserved.

During Asaf Jahis regime, at the invitation of the the Nizam, several distinguished Kayasth, Asthanas, Saxenas, Mathurs, Karans and many such families likewise came down to make Hyderabad their own. Migration When that be so, Andhra families have been living in Telangana region for over decades. May be, they have migrated for different reasons like political, professional, business, educational and so on. Some of the families have sold their own properties and came over to Telangana and have invested for resettlement. This kind of migration, transition and resettlement of people to different towns and cities is nothing new, especially for Hyderabad and Telangana.

People of Telangana are highly tolerant, accommodative and peace-loving. When people settle and stay for over decades, they become naturalised citizens of any place. The US and the UK and other countries do offer citizenship, when people apply for it and they enjoy all privileges rights and they adhere to duties. It was surely an experiment in creating Linguistic States. But, it does not mean that all Andhras, or any other with similar background, are to be called ever as Settlers. Composite Culture Hyderabad is aptly known for its Ganga-Jamni Tehazeeb.

The Congress always ensured and assured their safety, welfare and economic development. Telangana Praja Samithi (TPS) founder A Madan Mohan took strong exception and unequivocally condemned, when abusive slogans were raised against the then Undivided Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Kasu Brahmananda Reddy, his family and other senior leaders. Madan Mohan directed TPS cadres to erase all such slogans on walls and buses. This is reflective of the culture of the people of Telangana.

Unfortunately, during the second phase of the Telangana Agitation, differentiation was made, of describing them as Settlers and not granting equal opportunities. Significantly, Settlers issue was never raised during the Telangana Agitation that rocked the State in 1969. Development Focus Development has always been the watchword for the Congress and this cannot be denied. What is development? If Hyderabad was the city with 40 to 50 lakh population in 1960s and 1.2 crores with floating today. It is because of the overall growth and development of the State – industrial, infrastructure, educational, research, medical, entrepreneurial and many other areas.

Was it not Congress that was responsible for establishing Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs) like BHEL, BDL, HAL, IDPL, which mothered ancillaries, several pharma industries, HMT, DRDL, DLRL to name a few? So also, NIN, RRL, NGRI, Sunny of India, HCU, EFLU, Agricultural University, Telugu University, NIFT, etc were started by the Congress. Who started Necklace Road, Budha Purnima Project and the Hi-Tech City? It is important to acknowledge the work and contributions made by different sections to the development of Telangana. Cosmopolitan Culture Since the times of the Asaf Jahis, people from all quarters were welcomed in Hyderabad with open arms. Nawab Nazar-Yar Jung from Uttar Pradesh served as erstwhile Hyderabad State High Court Chief Justice. Renowned Urdu poet Josh Malihabadi served as Head of Dar-ul-Tarjuma, or Bureau of Translation, in Osmania University. Tombs of famous Urdu poets, Amir Minai, Fani Badayuni and Daagh Dehlvi, all of whom hail from Uttar Pradesh, are located in the Yousufain Dargah in Hyderabad.

After Police Action from September 13-17, 1948, Major-General J N Choudhary served as Military Administrator till December, 1949. All-Embracing Govt From 1950 to 1952, a Civilian Government was formed in Hyderabad State. M K Velodi, a Keralite, was Chief Minister. M Seshadri from Karnataka region was the Home Minister. Phulchand Gandhi from Gujarat region was Education Minister and V B Raju, a Mulki, was Labour Minister. Dr M Channa Reddy was nominated to the Provisional Parliament, where he was appointed as Congress Parliamentary Party (CPP) Whip in the rank of Union Minister of State.

After the First General Election in 1952, in Burgula Ramkrishna Rao Government, in which Dr G S Melkote was the Finance Minister, Dr M Channa Reddy, who did his MBBS in Urdu medium, was Food & Agriculture Minister, V B Raju was Labour and Planning Minister and Phulchand Gandhi was Education Minister. Similarly, Justice Gopal Rao Ekbote was of Maharashtrian origin but a native of Hyderabad. He went on to become Chief Justice of the Andhra Pradesh High Court.

Justice for all

During the bifurcation of the State, the Congress took care to do justice to the Andhra region, even while carving out Telangana, fulfilling the aspirations and a long-pending demand of the people of the region. The social and cultural landscape of Telangana is defined by cultural pluralism and the cosmopolitan approach that is the hallmark of the erstwhile Hyderabad State. Settlers is a term with political overtones that divides between locals and non-locals. It came up during the Telangana Agitation. But, it is now a closed chapter, following the bifurcation of the State, resulting in the creation of Telangana. Andhras living in Hyderabad can no longer be dubbed as Settlers, as they are integral part of the cultural mosaic of Telangana.

A Shyam Mohan 

(Writer is Senior Congress  leader, TPCC Intellectual Cell Chairman and Vice-Chairman of the Congress Discilipinary Action Committee in the Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee)