Role of TELANGANA and Kakatiya University Students in 2nd phase Telangana movement

 

QUESTION:  Role of TELANGANA and Kakatiya University Students in 2^nd phase Telangana movement.

Answer: Introduction

The second phase of the Telangana movement, spanning from 2009 to 2014, represented a climactic resurgence in the long-standing quest for a separate state, driven by deep-rooted grievances over economic exploitation, cultural marginalization, and political disenfranchisement within united Andhra Pradesh since its formation on November 1, 1956. This phase was ignited by K. Chandrashekar Rao's indefinite hunger strike on November 29, 2009, which compelled the central government to announce the initiation of the Telangana state formation process on December 9, 2009, only for subsequent delays and the Srikrishna Committee's report on December 30, 2010, to fuel intensified agitations. Amid this backdrop, students from across Telangana emerged as the vanguard of the movement, infusing it with youthful vigor, organizational discipline, and sacrificial spirit that sustained protests through rallies, hunger strikes, and confrontations with authorities. Universities became hotbeds of activism, with Osmania University in Hyderabad often stealing the spotlight, but Kakatiya University in Warangal played an equally pivotal role, serving as a crucible for ideological discourse and mass mobilization in the northern districts. Students at Kakatiya, influenced by the legacy of Professor Kothapalli Jayashankar, a former vice-chancellor and ideological architect of the movement who passed away on June 21, 2011, organized under various banners to demand statehood, enduring police brutality and personal hardships. The Telangana Rashtra Samithi, founded by K. Chandrashekar Rao on April 27, 2001, provided the political backbone, evolving from a single-issue party to the spearhead of the agitation, with its youth wing actively engaging students. This interplay between student activism and political leadership transformed isolated demonstrations into a cohesive mass uprising, culminating in the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act on March 1, 2014, and Telangana's birth on June 2, 2014. Examining the roles of Telangana students in general and Kakatiya University students in particular reveals how education institutions became sites of resistance, where young minds challenged systemic inequities, drawing on historical precedents like the 1969 Jai Telangana movement while adapting to contemporary strategies.

The movement's second phase built upon the unaddressed promises of the Gentlemen's Agreement of February 20, 1956, which had assured safeguards for Telangana's interests but were violated through policies favoring coastal Andhra, such as unequal irrigation shares from the Godavari and Krishna rivers. By 2009, unemployment among educated youth had soared, with Telangana's graduates facing discrimination in government jobs despite contributing over 40 percent to the state's revenue. Students, perceiving statehood as a pathway to equitable opportunities, mobilized en masse, forming joint action committees that coordinated with political entities like the Telangana Rashtra Samithi. This synergy was evident from the outset, as student leaders rallied in support of K. Chandrashekar Rao's fast, amplifying demands through cultural expressions and digital campaigns. Kakatiya University, established on August 19, 1976, in Warangal, a historic city symbolizing Telangana's cultural heritage from the Kakatiya dynasty, became a focal point due to its proximity to rural heartlands plagued by agrarian distress. Under the guidance of figures like Professor Jayashankar, who had advocated for separation since the 1950s, students there not only protested but also intellectualized the struggle, linking it to broader themes of self-determination and social justice.

Formation of Telangana Rashtra Samithi in 2001 and Its Role in the Movement

The establishment of the Telangana Rashtra Samithi on April 27, 2001, marked a turning point in the political articulation of Telangana's aspirations, providing a dedicated platform that galvanized the region toward statehood. Founded by K. Chandrashekar Rao, popularly known as KCR, at a massive rally in Hyderabad's Nizam College Grounds, the party emerged from KCR's disillusionment with the Telugu Desam Party, which he had joined in 1983 under N.T. Rama Rao but quit on March 27, 2001, citing neglect of Telangana's issues. KCR, born on February 17, 1954, in Chintamadaka village, had risen through political ranks as a minister in the Telugu Desam Party government, holding portfolios like labor and employment from 1985 to 1999, where he witnessed firsthand the disparities in job allocations violating the Mulki Rules of 1919. The Telangana Rashtra Samithi's single-point agenda was the creation of a separate Telangana state with Hyderabad as its capital, resonating with the frustrations accumulated since the 1956 merger. Professor Kothapalli Jayashankar, then a retired academic from Kakatiya University, served as the ideological mentor, coining the party's slogan "Neellu, Nidhulu, Niyamakalu" meaning water, funds, and jobs, which encapsulated the movement's core demands. Jayashankar, who had drafted similar proposals during the 1969 agitation, collaborated closely with KCR, organizing seminars at Kakatiya University to educate youth on historical injustices.

In its early years, the Telangana Rashtra Samithi focused on building a grassroots network, forming youth wings like the Telangana Rashtra Samithi Vidyarthi Vibhagam in 2002, which recruited students from universities including Kakatiya and Osmania. By contesting the 2004 assembly elections in alliance with the Congress Party, the Telangana Rashtra Samithi won 26 seats, with KCR securing the Siddipet constituency on May 11, 2004, and briefly serving as Union Minister for Shipping from August 2004 to August 2006. This electoral success validated the party's relevance, prompting KCR to resign his ministerial post and Lok Sabha seat on December 4, 2006, to protest the Congress's inaction on statehood, leading to a by-election victory on April 30, 2008. The party's role intensified in the second phase, as KCR's fast-unto-death on November 29, 2009, at the Telangana Bhavan in Hyderabad drew immediate support from students, who viewed the Telangana Rashtra Samithi as their political voice. The party's organizational structure, including district committees in Warangal led by figures like Errabelli Dayakar Rao, facilitated coordination with student groups, supplying resources for protests and amplifying demands through media campaigns.

The Telangana Rashtra Samithi's influence extended to cultural revival, sponsoring events like the Telangana Mahasabha in 2002, where poets and artists performed to foster regional pride. KCR's daughter, Kavitha Kalvakuntla, founded the Telangana Jagrutha in 2007, a cultural organization that engaged women and youth, organizing rallies in Warangal on March 8, 2008, coinciding with International Women's Day. By 2009, the party had morphed into the epicenter of the agitation, with KCR addressing student gatherings at Kakatiya University on December 5, 2009, urging non-violent resistance. The Telangana Rashtra Samithi's strategic alliances, such as with the Bharatiya Janata Party in 2009, bolstered its leverage, culminating in KCR's triumphant return to politics after the fast's success, where he was hospitalized on December 8, 2009, but recovered to lead the movement forward. This political entity not only provided leadership but also empowered students by integrating them into decision-making, as seen in the formation of the Telangana Political Joint Action Committee on December 24, 2009, under Professor M. Kodandaram, which included Telangana Rashtra Samithi representatives.

Role of Telangana Students in the Second Phase Movement

Telangana students, encompassing a broad spectrum from universities, colleges, and high schools, served as the dynamic force propelling the second phase movement, their actions characterized by relentless protests, innovative tactics, and profound sacrifices that pressured both state and central governments. The agitation's student-led dimension began intensifying in late 2009, as youth from institutions like Osmania University, Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University, and Kakatiya University responded to KCR's hunger strike with solidarity strikes and processions. On November 30, 2009, students across Telangana observed a bandh, shutting down campuses and blocking roads, leading to clashes with police in Hyderabad where over 50 were injured. The Osmania University Joint Action Committee, formed on November 29, 2009, under leaders like George Lavu, coordinated these efforts, drafting an eleven-point charter demanding immediate statehood, educational reforms, and job reservations. This committee, comprising unions like the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad, National Students' Union of India, and Telangana Rashtra Samithi Vidyarthi Vibhagam, organized the Vidyarthi Maha Garjana rally on January 5, 2010, at Osmania, attracting over 200,000 participants who chanted slogans against the Congress government's indecision.

Students' sacrifices were stark, with self-immolations becoming a tragic symbol; Srikantha Chary, a student from Osmania, set himself ablaze on December 3, 2009, succumbing to injuries on December 23, 2009, inspiring a wave of similar acts, including over 600 reported suicides between 2009 and 2013. These events galvanized public sympathy, prompting the formation of the Telangana Students' Joint Action Committee on December 10, 2009, which unified efforts across universities. In February 2010, students launched a non-cooperation movement from February 17, 2010, boycotting classes for 16 days, disrupting examinations and forcing the government to postpone academic schedules. Leaders like Balka Suman from the Telangana Rashtra Samithi Vidyarthi Vibhagam faced arrests during these actions but continued underground mobilization, using social media to spread videos of police atrocities, such as the lathi charge at Osmania on February 14, 2010, which injured 100 students.

The Million March on March 10, 2011, modeled after Egypt's Tahrir Square protests, saw students converging at Tank Bund in Hyderabad, vandalizing statues of Andhra icons in a symbolic rejection of cultural imposition, resulting in over 1,000 arrests including key figures from the Osmania University Joint Action Committee. This event, organized in collaboration with the Telangana Joint Action Committee under Professor Kodandaram, highlighted students' organizational prowess, as they coordinated transport blockades and cultural programs featuring folk songs by Balladeer Gaddar. The Sakala Janula Samme, the all-people's strike commencing September 13, 2011, and lasting 42 days until October 24, 2011, owed much to student support, with youth guarding picket lines and joining employee unions in halting services, causing economic losses exceeding 8 billion rupees daily.

Students also engaged in cultural resistance, reviving Telangana's dialect and arts through theater groups at universities, performing plays on historical figures like Komaram Bheem during the Telangana March on September 30, 2012, where over 200,000 protested in Hyderabad despite curfews. The Chalo Assembly march on June 14, 2013, attempted to storm the legislature, leading to violent confrontations where students like those from Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University pelted stones at barricades, facing rubber bullets and tear gas. Throughout, female students played crucial roles, with leaders like B. Sandhya from Osmania organizing women's rallies on August 15, 2010, linking independence day to Telangana's freedom from Andhra dominance. The movement's student wing pressured political resignations, as 10 Telangana Rashtra Samithi MLAs quit on July 4, 2011, in solidarity with youth demands, accelerating the Group of Ministers' formation on October 3, 2013, to draft the bifurcation bill.

Specific Role of Kakatiya University Students in the Movement

Kakatiya University students, hailing from the heartland of Telangana in Warangal, distinguished themselves in the second phase movement through localized yet impactful activism that complemented the urban fervor of Hyderabad, drawing on the institution's legacy as a breeding ground for separatist ideology under Professor Jayashankar. The university's involvement surged on November 17, 2009, with the formation of the Kakatiya University Student Joint Action Committee at a campus meeting, uniting unions like the Telangana Students Front, Progressive Democratic Students' Union, and Telangana Rashtra Samithi Vidyarthi Vibhagam under leaders such as K. Venkat from the All India Students' Federation. This committee, inspired by KCR's fast announced on November 29, 2009, organized immediate solidarity processions, with over 5,000 students marching to the Warangal Collectorate on November 30, 2009, demanding statehood and facing police detention of 200 participants.

The Kakatiya Vidyarthi Garjana, a massive student roar rally on December 5, 2009, became a landmark event, addressed by KCR himself before his hospitalization, where students vowed indefinite strikes until the central announcement on December 9, 2009. Post-announcement, when delays ensued, Kakatiya students escalated actions, participating in the Praja Chaitanya Yatra padayatra from Warangal to Hyderabad starting June 2, 2010, covering rural villages to educate on water disparities, such as Telangana's 20 percent share in Godavari projects. Tragic incidents underscored their commitment; on January 19, 2010, student Yadaiah self-immolated on campus, dying on January 20, 2010, prompting a week-long shutdown and memorials that became rallying points. Leaders like those from the Telangana Liberation Students Organization, formed in 2009 at Kakatiya, linked arms with peasant groups, protesting agrarian suicides in districts like Karimnagar on February 20, 2010.

Professor Jayashankar's influence was profound; as former vice-chancellor from 1991 to 1995, he had nurtured a culture of debate, and during the movement, he addressed Kakatiya forums on March 15, 2010, critiquing the Srikrishna Committee's formation on February 3, 2010, as a delaying tactic. Students responded by boycotting committee hearings on July 2, 2010, in Warangal, clashing with police and injuring 50 in lathi charges. The university's Telangana Intellectuals Forum, established in 2010, organized seminars on economic data, such as the 22 families from Andhra controlling state wealth, providing ammunition for protests. In the non-cooperation phase from February 17, 2011, Kakatiya students abstained from classes, coordinating with teachers' unions to disrupt academics, forcing postponements until March 5, 2011.

During the Sakala Janula Samme, Kakatiya's role was crucial in rural mobilization; students joined miners from Singareni Collieries on September 13, 2011, halting coal production and causing power outages, with leaders like S. Raju from the Students' Federation of India arrested on September 20, 2011. The Telangana March on September 30, 2012, saw Kakatiya contingents traveling to Hyderabad, contributing to the massive turnout despite roadblocks. On June 20, 2013, student activists from Kakatiya petitioned the government for recognition of their contributions, highlighting over 100 arrests and injuries sustained in events like the Chalo Assembly. Post-Jayashankar's death on June 21, 2011, students commemorated him annually, organizing the Jayashankar Memorial Lecture on June 21, 2012, to sustain ideological fervor. Female students at Kakatiya, through groups like the Telangana Mahila Joint Action Committee formed in 2010, held vigils and dharnas, such as on March 8, 2011, linking women's empowerment to statehood.

Kakatiya's activism extended to cultural fronts, with students reviving Bathukamma festivals in October 2010 as protest symbols, performing dances at rallies to assert Telangana's identity. The university's proximity to tribal areas enabled outreach to Adivasi communities, with students like those from the Dendeti Sadanandam-led tribal wing organizing meetings in Adilabad on April 15, 2011, demanding reservations. By 2013, as the bill neared passage, Kakatiya students participated in victory processions on February 18, 2014, following the Lok Sabha approval, crediting their endurance for the outcome. Their role, though less publicized than Osmania's, was vital in anchoring the movement in rural Telangana, where agrarian and educational inequities were most acute.

Interplay Between Students, Telangana Rashtra Samithi, and Other Organizations

The interplay between Telangana students, the Telangana Rashtra Samithi, and organizations like the Telangana Joint Action Committee fortified the movement, creating a symbiotic relationship where political strategy met youthful execution. The Telangana Rashtra Samithi's youth wing, led by figures like Harish Rao, nephew of KCR, recruited heavily from Kakatiya and Osmania, providing training in non-violent protest techniques during camps in May 2010. Joint Action Committees at universities collaborated with the Telangana Political Joint Action Committee, formed on December 24, 2009, to plan events like the Million March. Professor Kodandaram, convenor of the Telangana Joint Action Committee, often consulted student leaders from Kakatiya, incorporating their demands into the eleven-point program unveiled on January 5, 2010. Organizations such as the Telangana Development Forum, established in 1999 in the USA but active in 2009 with diaspora funding, supported student scholarships amid strikes, while the Telangana Writers' Forum, founded in 2010, published literature distributed at campus events.

This collaboration peaked during crises; when KCR was arrested on June 14, 2013, during Chalo Assembly, students from Kakatiya staged solidarity hunger strikes, pressuring his release on June 15, 2013. The Telangana Employees Joint Action Committee, formed in 2010, linked with students for the Sakala Janula Samme, where university youth provided logistical support to striking workers. Caste-based groups like the Madiga Reservation Porata Samithi, active from 2010 under Manda Krishna Madiga, allied with Kakatiya's Dalit student unions, addressing intersectional issues in rallies on December 6, 2011. Through these networks, students amplified the Telangana Rashtra Samithi's agenda, ensuring the movement remained people-centric rather than purely political.

Conclusion

The second phase Telangana movement's triumph owes immensely to the indomitable spirit of Telangana students, particularly those from Kakatiya University, whose roles intertwined with the Telangana Rashtra Samithi's political leadership to forge a path to statehood on June 2, 2014. From the party's formation by K. Chandrashekar Rao on April 27, 2001, to the sacrificial protests led by youth under figures like Professor Jayashankar until his demise on June 21, 2011, this era exemplified how education and activism converged to challenge injustice. Key events like the Kakatiya Vidyarthi Garjana on December 5, 2009, and the Million March on March 10, 2011, alongside organizations such as the Osmania University Joint Action Committee and Telangana Joint Action Committee, underscore the collective resolve that overcame repression. Yet, the movement's legacy extends beyond statehood, reminding of ongoing needs for equity in jobs and resources, as students' sacrifices—marked by dates like November 17, 2009, for Kakatiya's JAC formation—continue to inspire governance reforms. Ultimately, this chapter in history affirms that empowered youth, guided by visionary leaders, can reshape destinies, fostering a Telangana rooted in justice and self-respect.