Telangana Rashtra Samithi president and Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao has criticised the opposition parties for creating “unnecessary ruckus” over official celebrations of Hyderabad Liberation Day on September 17 asserting that Telangana was actually truly liberated on June 2, 2014.
He categorically said that the government would not restrict anyone from organising any celebrations on September 17 and the government would accord permission to all such events. “It is a day of transformation from autocracy to democracy. But Telangana underwent lot of trauma post liberation. Routes were laid for army rule and scores of people including Communist leaders were shot dead the same day,” he said.
The Chief Minister said the development was being interpreted in different ways by various sides of the political spectrum to suit their own purposes. “If it is construed as liberation from the Nizam’s rule, why did Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel make Nizam as Raj Pramukh?” he asked. He said the TRS after coming to power consulted experts from different sections on the course that should be adopted relating to September 17 and it was felt that official celebrations would tantamount to “raking up old wounds”.
“I too demanded official celebration of September 17 during the Statehood movement,” he said recalling that the TRS hoisted the national flag atop its building every year to commemorate the day. He said that the State was now part of Indian Union after achieving its real independence on June 2, 2014 and asserted that the State would curb with iron hand the attempts of vested interests to create disturbances.