Police Block BJP’s Charminar Rally

Police in Hyderabad foiled the attempts by the BJP to take out a rally from Balapur to Bhagyalakshmi Temple at Charminar on Sunday, ahead of Telangana Liberation Day, drawing angry protests from the party.

BJP in-charge for Maheswaram constituency, Andela Sriramulu Yadav and other party leaders were detained when they tried to take out ‘Vimochana Jaitrayatra’.

The BJP condemned the denial of permission for the rally.

"The fact that the Congress government denied permission for a rally from Balapur to the Charminar Bhagyalakshmi Temple on the occasion of Telangana Liberation Day clearly demonstrates how much it fears democracy and the spirit of patriotism. Having imposed restrictions on 'Vande Mataram,' the Congress party is now obstructing even the celebrations meant to honour the spirit of independence,” reads a social media post by the party’s Telangana unit.

Meanwhile, Telangana BJP President N. Ramchander Rao asked if celebrating Telangana Liberation Day is a crime in Congress-ruled Telangana.

"Having sunk to deep depths of appeasement, Congress Party has once again crushed democracy by “stopping the Vimochana Jaitrayatra from Balapur to Charminar and arresting Maheshwaram BJP in-charge,” he said.

“Why is Congress so afraid of celebrating Telangana Liberation Day? We may have moved far beyond 1948, but Congress mindset is still Razakar and Nizam DNA. In its rampant vote-bank politics and appeasement, Congress has forgotten that India is a democracy. BJP leaders are stopped, detained and arrested for everything, from dharnas and protests to even celebrating Telangana Liberation Day. Shame!,” Ramchander Rao posted on ‘X’.

The BJP is gearing up to celebrate Telangana Liberation Day on September 17. It was on this day in 1948 that the then Hyderabad State was annexed into the Indian Union.

For the fifth consecutive year, the Centre is organising Hyderabad Liberation Day celebrations at Parade Grounds, Secunderabad.

Vice President C.P. Radhakrishnan will be the chief guest at this year’s event. He will hoist the National Flag and review the parade by the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF).

Governor Shiv Pratap Shukla, Union Minister G. Kishan Reddy and others will attend the event.

The Central and State governments will be celebrating the day with different themes.

Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy will unfurl the National Flag at the main event to be held at the Public Garden in Hyderabad. For the third year in a row, the state government is celebrating it as 'Telangana Praja Palana Dinotsavam' (people's governance day).

State ministers, government advisors, and key representatives will hoist the National Flag and take the salute at the official celebrations in all 32 district headquarters.

The National Flag will also be unfurled at all government offices, urban local bodies, and gram panchayats.

While the earlier Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) government celebrated September 17 as 'National Integration Day' in 2022 and 2023, the Congress, which came to power in December 2023, decided to celebrate the occasion as ‘Praja Palana Dinotsvam’.