Archive · 17 Sep 2026
Kavitha Accuses Congress, BJP of Distorting Telangana Struggle History
Kalvakuntla Kavitha spoke about the history of Telangana on September 17.
This date marks Hyderabad State joining the Indian Union in 1948.
She said the Congress and BJP tell incomplete or distorted stories about what happened.
Kavitha argued that ordinary people led the struggle against unfair feudal systems.
She said people from different religions and communities took part.
She also remembered writers, activists, farmers and women who helped the movement.
Kavitha criticized political parties for claiming credit for the struggle many years later.
She called on people to protect their rights and change the government through democratic means.
Kalvakuntla Kavitha accused the Congress and BJP of distorting Telangana’s historical struggle for political gain.
She said the movement was driven by ordinary people resisting feudal oppression, rather than being solely a Hindu-Muslim conflict.
Kavitha credited writers, activists, peasant leaders and people from different communities with mobilising the struggle.
She alleged that land distributed to poor people was later restored to landlords, while official material describes complex post-integration land reforms.
Kavitha said the Telangana Rakshana Sena would protect people’s rights and oppose what she called the state’s “anarchic forces.”
- Who
- Kalvakuntla Kavitha, chief of the Telangana Rakshana Sena, addressed party workers and supporters.
- What
- She criticized the Congress and BJP over their differing accounts of Telangana’s historical struggle and linked its legacy to her party’s political agenda.
- When
- Thursday, on September 17, the anniversary of Hyderabad State’s integration into the Indian Union in 1948.
- Where
- At the Telangana Rakshana Sena headquarters in Banjara Hills, Hyderabad.
- Why
- Kavitha said political parties were distorting or appropriating the struggle for contemporary political purposes.
Kavitha’s Account
Competing Political and Official Framings
Meaning of the struggle
Kavitha’s Account
Kavitha said the movement centered on ordinary people resisting oppressive feudal structures, with participation across communities.
Competing Political and Official Framings
Kavitha said the BJP reduces the episode mainly to a conflict between the Nizam and Hindus, while the Congress overstates its own role; the article does not include direct responses from either party.
Commemoration of September 17
Kavitha’s Account
Kavitha emphasized the sacrifices of grassroots participants and rejected later political appropriation of their struggle.
Competing Political and Official Framings
The Telangana government calls the occasion Praja Palana Dinotsavam, while other political groups use terms including Liberation Day, Integration Day and Merger Day.
Role of political organizations
Kavitha’s Account
Kavitha said the BJP and RSS had no role in the historical struggle and that people and contemporary grassroots organizations drove it.
Competing Political and Official Framings
The article reports her claim but provides no direct counterstatement from the BJP or RSS.
- Speaker
- Kalvakuntla Kavitha, chief of the Telangana Rakshana Sena
- Occasion
- September 17, marking Hyderabad State’s integration into the Indian Union in 1948
- Government terminology
- The Telangana government officially observes the day as Praja Palana Dinotsavam
- Main criticism
- Kavitha accused the Congress and BJP of presenting distorted historical narratives
- Her interpretation
- The struggle was a broad resistance by ordinary people against feudal oppression and injustice
- Land claim
- Kavitha alleged that about 10 lakh acres distributed to poor people were later restored to landlords
- Political appeal
- She urged people to unite against what she called “anarchic forces” and remove them democratically