The land of socio-political revolution ready for another poll battle

Basavakalyan in Bidar district, historically called Kalyani or Kalyana, had served as the royal capital of the Kalyani Chalukyas and the Kalachuris

Today’s Basavakalyan in Bidar district, which was historically called Kalyani (Kalyana) and had served as the royal capital of Kalyani Chalukyas and Kalachuris, has had a special place in the history of India for its intense socio-political activities in the 12th Century that later came to be known as Vachana Kranti or Kalyana Kranti, a mass movement led by Basaveshwara and other Sharanas against caste-based oppression and gender-based discrimination. It was in this process of establishing an egalitarian society that the Sharanas had formed and operated Anubhava Mantapa, with Allamaprabhu as its president, in Kalyana, which is often said to be the first democratic Parliament of the world, where the leaders of the movement discussed socio-political issues and chalked out their course of action. Apart from Chalukyas and Kalachuris, Kalyani was later ruled by Yadavas of Devagiri, Kakatiyas, Delhi Sultanate, Bahmani Sultanate, Barid Shahis of Bidar, Adil Shahis of Bijapur and the Mughals. When India was up in arms for her freedom in the first half of the 20th Century, the area was under the Nizam of Hyderabad. Later, in Independent India, Kalyani was renamed as Basavakalyan in memory of Basaveshwara, the Prime Minister of Kalachuri King Bijjala and the leader of the revolutionary Sharanas of the 12th Century.