The history of the Telangana movement refers to the political and social conditions under which the Telangana region was merged with Andhra State to form the state of Andhra Pradesh and the subsequent demands to reverse the merger to form a new state of Telangana.
A Communist-led peasant revolt started in Telangana in 1946, which lasted until 1951. Hyderabad state included 9 Telugu speaking districts of Telangana, 4 Kannada districts in Gulbarga division & 4 Marathi speaking districts in Aurangabad division. Rangareddy district was carved out of Hyderabad district of Telangana in 1978. Now Telangana has 10 districts. The Central Government appointed a civil servant, M. K. Vellodi, as First Chief Minister of Hyderabad state on 26 January 1950. He administered the state with the help of bureaucrats from Madras state and Bombay state. In 1952, Dr. Burgula Ramakrishna Rao was elected Chief minister of Hyderabad State in the first democratic election. During this time there were violent agitations by some Telanganites to send back bureaucrats from Madras state, and to strictly implement 'Mulki-rules'(Local jobs for locals only), which was part of Hyderabad state law since 1919.[4]
In 1952, Telugu-speaking people were distributed in about 22 districts, 9 of them in the former Nizam's dominions of the princely state of Hyderabad, 12 in the Madras Presidency (Andhra region), and one in French-controlled Yanam. Meanwhile, Telugu-speaking areas in the Andhra region were carved out of the erstwhile Madras state by leaders like Potti Sri Ramulu to create Andhra State in 1953, with Kurnool as its capital.[5][6][7]
Map of the Hyderabad State during 1909
In 1952, there was a students agitation against non Mulkis (mulki
meaning locals). The agitation arose after many jobs were taken by
people from coastal Andhra. The popular slogans were Non-Mulki go back and Idli Sambar go back. During the protests seven students were killed in police firing.[4] In December 1953, the States Reorganization Commission was appointed to prepare for the creation of states on linguistic lines.[8] The commission, due to public demand, recommended disintegration of Hyderabad state and to merge Marathi speaking region with Bombay state and Kannada speaking region with Mysore state.
Hyderabad state in 1956(in yellowish green). After reorganization in 1956, Regions of the state west of Red and Blue lines merged with Bombay and Mysore states respectively and rest of the state(Telangana) was merged with Andhra state to form Andhra Pradesh state
The States Reorganisation Commission
(SRC) was not in favour of an immediate merger of Telugu speaking
Telangana region with Andhra state, despite their common language.
Paragraph 382 of the States Reorganisation Commission Report (SRC) said
"opinion in Andhra is overwhelmingly in favour of the larger unit;
public opinion in Telangana has still to crystallize itself. Important
leaders of public opinion in Andhra themselves seem to appreciate that
the unification of Telangana with Andhra, though desirable, should be
based on a voluntary and willing association of the people and that it
is primarily for the people of Telangana to take a decision about their
future". The people of Telangana had several concerns. The region had a
less-developed economy than Andhra, but with a larger revenue base
(mostly because it taxed rather than prohibited alcoholic beverages),
which people of Telangana feared might be diverted for use in Andhra.
They feared that planned irrigation projects on the Krishna and Godavari
rivers would not benefit Telangana proportionately, even though people
of Telangana controlled the headwaters of the rivers. It was feared that
the people of Andhra, who had access to higher standards of education
under the British rule, would have an unfair advantage in seeking
government and educational jobs.
The commission proposed that the Telangana region be constituted as a separate state with a provision for unification with Andhra state, after the 1961 general elections, if a resolution could be passed in the Telangana state assembly with a two-thirds majority. The Chief Minister of Hyderabad State, Burgula Ramakrishna Rao, expressed his view that a majority of Telangana people were against the merger.[9] He supported the Congress party's central leadership decision to merge Telangana and Andhra despite opposition in Telangana.[10] Andhra state assembly passed a resolution on 25 November 1955 to provide safeguards to Telangana. The resolution said, "Assembly would further like to assure the people in Telangana that the development of that area would be deemed to be special charge, and that certain priorities and special protection will be given for the improvement of that area, such as reservation in services and educational institutions on the basis of population and irrigational development."[11] Telangana leaders did not believe the safeguards would work.[12][13]
Hyderabad Chief minister in his letter to Congress President said Communist parties supported the merger for their political calculations. Hyderabad PCC chief said overwhelming majority from Congress party opposed the merger and Communists were elected in special circumstances in 1951 and Visalandhra was not a political issue in 1951 and Assembly does not reflect people's view on this issue. He also said 80% of Congress delegates who were elected in 1955 opposed merger. Government had to provide the additional security for Communist leaders who supported the Visalandhra.[14]
In Hyderabad assembly out of 174 MLAs On 3 December 1955, 147 MLAs expressed their view. 103 MLA's (including Marathi and Kannada MLAs) supported the merger, 16 MLAs maintained neutral stand and 29 opposed merger. Among Telangana MLAs, 25 Telangana MLAs disagreed with the merger, 59 Telangana MLAs supported the merger. Out of 94 Telangana MLAs in the assembly, 36 were Communists(PDF), 40 were Congress, 11 were Socialist party(SP), 9 were independents. Voting did not take place on the resolution because Telangana proponents insisted on to including the phrase "As per the wishes of people" in the resolution. [15] [16]
With lobbying from Andhra Congress leaders and with pressure from the Central leadership of Congress party, an agreement was reached between Telangana leaders and Andhra leaders on 20 February 1956 to merge Telangana and Andhra with promises to safeguard Telangana's interests.[17][18] This came to be known as the Gentlemen's agreement. The agreement allowed the formation of the state of Andhra Pradesh in 1956 itself, against the SRC's recommendations of waiting until 1961 to get the approval of 2/3 of Telangana state assembly after the 2 cycles of elections in Telangana state.
Prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru initially was skeptical of merging Telangana with Andhra State, fearing a "tint of expansionist imperialism" in it.[19][20] He compared the merger to a matrimonial alliance having "provisions for divorce" if the partners in the alliance cannot get on well.[21][22][23] Following the Gentlemen's agreement, the central government established a unified Andhra Pradesh on November 1, 1956.[5][24][25] The agreement provided reassurances to Telangana in terms of power-sharing as well as administrative domicile rules and distribution of expenses of various regions.
A map showing several rivers including the Godavari and Krishna. Both the rivers flow into Coastal Andhra and through Telangana
Telangana is the largest of the three regions of Andhra Pradesh
state, covering 41.47% of its total area. It is inhabited by 40.54% of
the state's population and contributes about 76% of the state's revenues
including the Hyderabad city revenue(50%), excluding the contribution
of the central government. When the central government's contribution to
revenue is included, Andhra Pradesh's revenue sources come from
Telangana: 61.47% (including 37.17% from Hyderabad); from the central
government: 19.86%; from Andhra: 14.71%; and from Rayalaseema: 3.90%.[26]
Proponents of a separate Telangana state cite perceived injustices in
the distribution of water, budget allocations, and jobs. Within the
state of Andhra Pradesh, 68.5% of the catchment area of the Krishna River and 69% of the catchment area of the Godavari River are in the plateau region of Telangana and flowing through the other parts of the state into bay of Bengal.[27] Telangana and non coastal parts of Karnataka and Maharastra states form Deccan Plateau.
Telangana supporters state that the benefits of irrigation through the
canal system under major irrigation projects is accruing substantially,
74.25%, to the Coastal Andhra region, while the share to Telangana is
18.20%. The remaining 7.55% goes to the Rayalaseema region.[28]
The share of education funding for Telangana ranges from 9.86% in government-aided primary schools to 37.85% in government degree colleges. The above numbers include the expenditure in Hyderabad. Budget allocations to Telangana are generally less than 1/3 of the total Andhra Pradesh budget. There are allegations that in most years, funds allocated to Telangana were never spent. According to Professor Jayashankar only 20% of the total Government employees, less than 10% of employees in the secretariat, and less than 5% of department heads in the Andhra Pradesh government are from Telangana; those from other regions make up the bulk of employment.[28][29][30] He also alleged that the state was represented by Telangana chief ministers for only 6 1/2 years out of over five decades of its existence, with no chief minister from the region being in power continuously for more than 2 1/2 years.[28] As per Srikrishna committee on Telangana, Telangana held the position of CM for 10.5 years while Seema-Andhra region held it for 42 years.[31] Proponents of a separate Telangana state feel that the agreements, plans, and assurances from the legislature and Lok Sabha over the last fifty years have not been honoured, and as a consequence Telangana has remained neglected, exploited, and backward. They allege that the experiment to remain as one state has proven to be a futile exercise and that separation is the best solution
Monarchy to Democracy
When India became independent from the British Empire in 1947, the Nizam of Hyderabad, a Muslim king, wanted Hyderabad State to remain independent under the special provisions given to princely states. The Hindus of the Hyderabad State who accounted for 93 per cent of its population, launched the `Join India' movement with the cooperation of a few patriotic Muslims for the integration of the State with the rest of the country. The State Congress leaders and Arya Samaj leaders invoked themselves whole-heartedly in the movement. The peasants of the state, influenced by Communist party, had also revolted against the Nizam, who tried to suppress their armed struggle against landlords. Qasim Razvi led private Razakar Muslim army fighting for continuation of the Nizam's rule, did worst forms of atrocities on people.The Government of India liberated and assimilated the Hyderabad State on 17 September 1948, in an operation by the Indian Army called Operation Polo.A Communist-led peasant revolt started in Telangana in 1946, which lasted until 1951. Hyderabad state included 9 Telugu speaking districts of Telangana, 4 Kannada districts in Gulbarga division & 4 Marathi speaking districts in Aurangabad division. Rangareddy district was carved out of Hyderabad district of Telangana in 1978. Now Telangana has 10 districts. The Central Government appointed a civil servant, M. K. Vellodi, as First Chief Minister of Hyderabad state on 26 January 1950. He administered the state with the help of bureaucrats from Madras state and Bombay state. In 1952, Dr. Burgula Ramakrishna Rao was elected Chief minister of Hyderabad State in the first democratic election. During this time there were violent agitations by some Telanganites to send back bureaucrats from Madras state, and to strictly implement 'Mulki-rules'(Local jobs for locals only), which was part of Hyderabad state law since 1919.[4]
In 1952, Telugu-speaking people were distributed in about 22 districts, 9 of them in the former Nizam's dominions of the princely state of Hyderabad, 12 in the Madras Presidency (Andhra region), and one in French-controlled Yanam. Meanwhile, Telugu-speaking areas in the Andhra region were carved out of the erstwhile Madras state by leaders like Potti Sri Ramulu to create Andhra State in 1953, with Kurnool as its capital.[5][6][7]
1952 Mulki agitation and Merger of Telangana and Andhra
The commission proposed that the Telangana region be constituted as a separate state with a provision for unification with Andhra state, after the 1961 general elections, if a resolution could be passed in the Telangana state assembly with a two-thirds majority. The Chief Minister of Hyderabad State, Burgula Ramakrishna Rao, expressed his view that a majority of Telangana people were against the merger.[9] He supported the Congress party's central leadership decision to merge Telangana and Andhra despite opposition in Telangana.[10] Andhra state assembly passed a resolution on 25 November 1955 to provide safeguards to Telangana. The resolution said, "Assembly would further like to assure the people in Telangana that the development of that area would be deemed to be special charge, and that certain priorities and special protection will be given for the improvement of that area, such as reservation in services and educational institutions on the basis of population and irrigational development."[11] Telangana leaders did not believe the safeguards would work.[12][13]
Hyderabad Chief minister in his letter to Congress President said Communist parties supported the merger for their political calculations. Hyderabad PCC chief said overwhelming majority from Congress party opposed the merger and Communists were elected in special circumstances in 1951 and Visalandhra was not a political issue in 1951 and Assembly does not reflect people's view on this issue. He also said 80% of Congress delegates who were elected in 1955 opposed merger. Government had to provide the additional security for Communist leaders who supported the Visalandhra.[14]
In Hyderabad assembly out of 174 MLAs On 3 December 1955, 147 MLAs expressed their view. 103 MLA's (including Marathi and Kannada MLAs) supported the merger, 16 MLAs maintained neutral stand and 29 opposed merger. Among Telangana MLAs, 25 Telangana MLAs disagreed with the merger, 59 Telangana MLAs supported the merger. Out of 94 Telangana MLAs in the assembly, 36 were Communists(PDF), 40 were Congress, 11 were Socialist party(SP), 9 were independents. Voting did not take place on the resolution because Telangana proponents insisted on to including the phrase "As per the wishes of people" in the resolution. [15] [16]
With lobbying from Andhra Congress leaders and with pressure from the Central leadership of Congress party, an agreement was reached between Telangana leaders and Andhra leaders on 20 February 1956 to merge Telangana and Andhra with promises to safeguard Telangana's interests.[17][18] This came to be known as the Gentlemen's agreement. The agreement allowed the formation of the state of Andhra Pradesh in 1956 itself, against the SRC's recommendations of waiting until 1961 to get the approval of 2/3 of Telangana state assembly after the 2 cycles of elections in Telangana state.
Prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru initially was skeptical of merging Telangana with Andhra State, fearing a "tint of expansionist imperialism" in it.[19][20] He compared the merger to a matrimonial alliance having "provisions for divorce" if the partners in the alliance cannot get on well.[21][22][23] Following the Gentlemen's agreement, the central government established a unified Andhra Pradesh on November 1, 1956.[5][24][25] The agreement provided reassurances to Telangana in terms of power-sharing as well as administrative domicile rules and distribution of expenses of various regions.
Grievances of Telangana proponents
The share of education funding for Telangana ranges from 9.86% in government-aided primary schools to 37.85% in government degree colleges. The above numbers include the expenditure in Hyderabad. Budget allocations to Telangana are generally less than 1/3 of the total Andhra Pradesh budget. There are allegations that in most years, funds allocated to Telangana were never spent. According to Professor Jayashankar only 20% of the total Government employees, less than 10% of employees in the secretariat, and less than 5% of department heads in the Andhra Pradesh government are from Telangana; those from other regions make up the bulk of employment.[28][29][30] He also alleged that the state was represented by Telangana chief ministers for only 6 1/2 years out of over five decades of its existence, with no chief minister from the region being in power continuously for more than 2 1/2 years.[28] As per Srikrishna committee on Telangana, Telangana held the position of CM for 10.5 years while Seema-Andhra region held it for 42 years.[31] Proponents of a separate Telangana state feel that the agreements, plans, and assurances from the legislature and Lok Sabha over the last fifty years have not been honoured, and as a consequence Telangana has remained neglected, exploited, and backward. They allege that the experiment to remain as one state has proven to be a futile exercise and that separation is the best solution
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