Congress and BRS intensify war of words over Deeksha Divas

The political atmosphere in Telangana escalated sharply as Congress and BRS leaders exchanged fierce accusations over the legacy of K Chandrasekhar Rao’s 2009 fast, which played a pivotal role in the separate-state movement. Telangana Congress president B Mahesh Kumar Goud alleged that KCR’s indefinite fast was nothing more than a drama. He said the BRS, by celebrating November 29 as Deeksha Diwas, was attempting to revive regional sentiment after a series of electoral setbacks. According to him, Telangana’s formation was not due to KCR’s fast but because of Sonia Gandhi, who, as UPA chairperson, recognised the struggle of Osmania University students and other activists. He added that KCR’s fast lacked sincerity as he consumed vitamins and fluids during the protest, and said it could not be compared with historic hunger strikes such as Potti Sriramulu’s fifty-six-day fast in 1952 or Irom Sharmila’s sixteen-year protest in Manipur.

Goud further said the BRS should withdraw its plans to observe Deeksha Diwas and instead perform a milk abhishekam to Sonia Gandhi’s portraits to acknowledge her role in the statehood decision. He said KCR did contribute to the movement but giving him sole credit was historically inaccurate because the real force behind the statehood agitation was the collective sacrifice of students and citizens across Telangana.

The BRS reacted strongly. MLA Talasani Srinivas Yadav said the entire world knew Telangana would not have been possible without KCR’s leadership. He said criticising KCR would not change history or diminish the emotional struggle that culminated in the state’s formation. KCR had launched his indefinite hunger strike on November 29, 2009, a moment that triggered political upheaval and fuelled the momentum that eventually led to statehood.

Amid this war of words, Minister Seethakka criticised the BRS for expanding its Deeksha Divas observances after losing power. She said that when the BRS was in government, it marked the occasion for a single day, but now it was staging ten-day dramas to regain sympathy. She demanded that the BRS use this event to explain what development it had achieved in its twenty-year political journey rather than relying on emotional symbolism and nostalgia.

At Telangana Bhavan, the BRS conducted a Grand Deeksha Divas programme attended by BRS Working President K. T. Rama Rao and senior party leaders. They paid floral tributes to the Telangana Talli statue and honoured Professor Jayashankar, who was a key ideological figure in the statehood movement. They also offered respects at the Telangana Martyrs’ memorial set up at the venue to honour those who sacrificed their lives for the separate state.

KTR shared an emotional message on social media, describing November 29 as “the day that changed Telangana’s destiny and led to statehood sixteen years ago,” saying the date would forever remain etched in history. He posted a video from Karimnagar showing the intense moments surrounding KCR’s arrest during the movement, recalling how emotions ran high across the region that day.

KTR also launched a sharp attack on the Congress with a strong statement. He said, “Those who removed the Telangana Talli statue and replaced it with a Congress figure are nothing but Congress slaves. We will remove the Rajiv Gandhi statue in front of the Secretariat and place the Telangana Talli statue in its rightful position.” He said the BRS would continue to defend Telangana’s identity and protect the symbols that represent the state’s long struggle.

Even as the BRS marked the occasion with large-scale programmes across Telangana, party chief K. Chandrashekar Rao remained absent from the Deeksha Diwas events. KCR did not attend the commemorations nor make any public appearance or press statement on the day that is closely associated with his 2009 fast. His absence has drawn attention because he has largely stayed away from public platforms since the party’s electoral defeat, appearing only rarely and allowing senior leaders, particularly K. T. Rama Rao, to lead major political activities. The party continued the observances under KTR’s leadership, with the BRS framing the day as a reaffirmation of the sacrifices and emotions tied to the statehood movement even in the absence of its founding figure.