BRS Challenges Congress on Cultural and Political Fronts

A year after losing power to the Congress in Telangana, the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) is working to re-establish its presence by intensifying pressure on the government regarding its alleged unfulfilled promises and by emphasizing Telangana's cultural identity.

The BRS has organized protest programs against what it perceives as the government's 'anti-people' measures and unfulfilled commitments. Recently, the controversy surrounding the 'Telangana Talli' (Mother Telangana) statue has provided the party with leverage to build a narrative focusing on the state's cultural identity.

The modified design of the Telangana Talli, unveiled by the Revanth Reddy-led government at the State Secretariat, has given the main opposition the opportunity to challenge the ruling party by reigniting regional sentiments.

In the past year, Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy has taken significant steps not only to reverse decisions made by the previous government but also to distance the current administration from BRS President and former Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao's (KCR) legacy in the Telangana movement. Trying to make his own mark, Revanth Reddy changed the state's abbreviation from 'TS' to 'TG' and adopted 'Jaya Jaya He Telangana' as the state's official song.

He has openly criticized the Telangana Talli design created by the TRS (now BRS), even suggesting that it resembled K. Kavitha, KCR's daughter. Upon taking office, Revanth Reddy announced plans to redesign the Telangana Talli statue. In May, he installed a statue of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi in front of the State Secretariat, prompting BRS to criticize him for using land that was intended for the Telangana Talli statue.

BRS leaders argued that Rajiv Gandhi holds no specific significance to Telangana, while the Telangana Talli statue represents the state's cultural identity. In response to BRS's criticism for not installing the Telangana Talli statue during its 10-year rule, the Chief Minister pledged to place it within the Secretariat premises.

He quickly laid the foundation stone and unveiled the redesigned statue on December 9, a date of historical significance as it marks the day in 2009 when the then Congress-led UPA government announced the initiation of the formation of Telangana. It also coincides with Sonia Gandhi's birthday. Revanth Reddy claimed that this is the first officially declared design of Telangana Talli, which reflects the true culture and traditions of the state.

The government issued a notification approving the design and features of the statue. According to the notification, the Telangana Talli statue stands on a pedestal of closed fists, symbolizing the spirited struggle for a separate state, with palms held upward to support the pedestal.

The left hand holds four traditional crops cultivated in Telangana, including maize, foxtail millet, paddy, and pearl millet, while the right hand signifies prosperity. The prior design depicted Telangana Talli as a goddess; the modified version instead signifies a common Telangana woman. In the new design, she is not depicted with a crown, and the gold adornments are minimal.

What outraged the BRS was the omission of Bathukamma, a prominent symbol of Telangana culture. In the earlier design, the mother figure was shown carrying Bathukamma (a floral arrangement) in her left hand and plants in her right hand. In the modified design, she now carries only plants with her left hand and displays an 'Abhaya Mudra' (gesture of reassurance) with her right hand.

BRS leaders quickly labeled this change as the 'Congress mother' reference, since the hand gesture is the election symbol of the Congress party. K. Kavitha, who had been relatively inactive since her release on bail in the Delhi excise policy case, seized the opportunity to re-enter the political spotlight. Kavitha, who played a key role in promoting Telangana's unique cultural identity during the movement through Bathukamma celebrations, participated in a ceremonial sanctification of the Telangana Talli statue with 'panchamritha' at BRS headquarters, Telangana Bhavan, as a protest against the revised model.

She criticized the government's justification for portraying Telangana Talli as a poor mother and expressed that the exclusion of Bathukamma from the new design amounts to an insult to Telangana's identity. Bathukamma is celebrated by women in Telangana for nine days, involving singing and dancing around specially arranged flowers.

At the conclusion of the festival, participants immerse the floral arrangements in local ponds. After forming its government in Telangana, the BRS declared Bathukamma as the state festival. The Member of the Telangana Legislative Council, who leads the cultural wing of BRS called Telangana Jagruthi, organized a roundtable inviting intellectuals, poets, writers, and community leaders to reaffirm their commitment to protecting Telangana's culture.

K. Kavitha accused the Congress government of undermining Telangana's heritage through its efforts to alter the Telangana Talli statue, asserting that such actions threaten the state's cultural identity.