Telangana Thalli's statue installed in Secretariat unacceptable: Kavitha

Hyderabad, Dec 10 (IANS) Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) MLC K. Kavitha said on Tuesday that the Telangana Thalli (Mother Telangana) statue installed by the Congress government in the State Secretariat was unacceptable.

She said the statue unveiled by Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy on Monday was that of 'Congress Thalli' and not 'Telangana Thalli'.

Kavitha along with BRS leaders performed 'pala abhishekham' and 'panchamrita abhishekham' of Telangana Thalli in BRS headquarters Telangana Bhavan as a mark of protest against the approach of the state government.

The Member of the Legislative Council slammed the Revanth Reddy government for the omission of 'Bathukamma' in the modified design of Telangana Thalli and for displaying the hand symbol of the Congress party.

Stating that Bathukamma is a state festival and an integral part of Telangana culture, she said by removing it, the Congress government has insulted the Telangana identity.

Kavitha, who is daughter of BRS president and former chief minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao, questioned the government why it modified the design of Telangana Thalli. She claimed that the design of the statue was finalised by the elders during the Telangana movement.

"The modified statue is not Telangana Thalli which inspires the people of Telangana. They have installed Congress Thalli," she said and accused Congress party of insulting the symbols chosen during the Telangana movement.

Earlier, BRS working president K. T. Rama Rao also described the installed statue at the Telangana Secretariat as "Congress Thalli." He alleged that the statue undermines the cultural and historical identity of Telangana and accused the Congress government of distorting the legacy of Telangana Thalli for political gains.

He highlighted the controversial changes made to the statue's design, including the omission of culturally significant symbols like Bathukamma and the crown. KTR pointed out the addition of the Congress Party's hand symbol, which he described as an attempt to align Telangana's identity with the party's political agenda.

"No one in the world changes the representation of their mother, but here in Telangana, the Congress government is attempting to distort the essence of Telangana Thalli," KTR remarked during a public meeting in Medchal where he unveiled the Telangana Thalli statue. He condemned the statue by Congress as an insult to the people who fought for Telangana's statehood, calling it a mockery of the state's struggles and aspirations.

He warned that once the BRS returns to power, the statue will be removed and sent to Gandhi Bhavan.

"Telangana Thalli represents the collective spirit of the entire Telangana society, not a single party or individual," KTR emphasised, adding that the Congress government was not only damaging the cultural symbols like Bathukamma but also tarnishing the state's identity.

He called for conducting milk and 'Panchamrita Abhishekam' at all existing Telangana Thalli statues across the state to reaffirm their identity.

BRS leaders and workers were also urged to change their social media profile pictures to images of Telangana Thalli.

BRS has called on Telangana citizens to protest the alleged disrespect shown to their cultural symbols by the Congress government.