KTR visits Charminar opposing removal of its image from Telangana emblem

K.T. Rama Rao opposes Telangana government's decision to exclude Charminar and Kakatiya Arch from state emblem launch.

Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) working president K.T. Rama Rao opposed Telangana government’s decision to exclude images of Charminar and Kakatiya Arch from the new state emblem to be launched on June 2, the State formation day, and warned of an agitation if the Government removes those two images.

KTR visited Charminar in Hyderabad on Thursday along with his party legislators and senior leaders to protest the Government’s decision and questioned the urgency with which the Government is going ahead to change the emblem. Are attempts to wipe out K. Chandrasekhar Rao’s legacy in Telangana the only work of the Congress?, he asked attributing political motives to the whole episode.

Earlier, taking to ‘X’ (formerly Twitter), KTR posted, “World over, Charminar has been the icon/symbol of Hyderabad for centuries. When one thinks of Hyderabad, one cannot but think of Charminar which has all the qualities of a UNESCO world heritage site. Now Congress Government wants to remove the iconic Charminar from the State Logo citing frivolous reasons. What a shame!!”

The former Minister warned that the BRS would take the legal recourse and also launch a people’s movement against the Government’s decision. He refuted the Government’s argument that Kakatiya Kala Thoranam and Charminar were the signs of imperialism and said they reflect the historical and archaeological significance of the region apart from being the symbols of development and welfare.

The Congress government in Telangana is planning to unveil the State emblem on the State formation day which is on June 2. The Government contends that the present emblem featuring Kakatiya Arch and Charminar reflected feudalism and autocratic rule.

Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy has been arguing that the Congress government wants an emblem that reflects the decades-long struggle for Telangana state. He has recently finalised the emblem along with Deputy Chief Minister Bhatti Vikramarka. The emblem is designed by artist Rudra Rajesham and will apparently include the symbols of tribal goddesses Sammakka and Sarakka, and the Nagoba festival of the tribals.

The new state song is also being finalised to be launched on June 2. Before the elections, the Chief Minister promised that ‘Jaya Jayahe Telangana’, a rage during the Telangana struggle penned by Andesri, would be the State song if the Congress came to power.