Former Telugu Desam working president A. Revanth Reddy, who switched over to Congress recently, has written a letter to Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao highlighting the latter’s negligence in gathering particulars about 1,569 martyrs of Telangana movement.
The kin of the martyrs in various districts petitioned the authorities seeking ex gratia and the same were forwarded to the Government but it failed to take any action, Mr. Reddy said in the letter.
Self-immolation
Citing an example, Mr. Reddy appended the letter of former Nizamabad Collector Yogita Rana, who wrote to the Government seeking grant of ex gratia to a 20-year-old youth K. Sai Goud. The youth had burnt himself to death for the cause of separate Telangana in March 2011.
Sai Goud took the extreme step shouting ‘Jai Telangana’ slogans as he could not go to Hyderabad for the ‘million march’ programme of Telangana Joint Action Committee demanding separate State. He was the guardian of his sister Prasanna and worked as a labourer for their living. The siblings lost their parents in childhood.
CM’s statement
Prasanna had been representing their plight to district authorities and the police had also submitted their report to Collector Rana who kept the government informed at regular intervals. But, the government was unmoved, Mr. Reddy added.
In this context, Mr. Reddy urged the Chief Minister to devote a day’s proceedings of the Assembly to discussing the government assistance to martyrs. Mr. Rao should make a statement on the issue. Mr. Rao should also convene a meeting with Director General of Police and Principal Secretary, Revenue, to identify the families of martyrs in the State, he wrote.
