: Lambasting the TRS government in Telangana for not celebrating the Hyderabad Liberation Day, Union Minister Prahlad Joshi on Tuesday called it the "most shameful" act and alleged it was due to the 'vote bank' politics of the ruling party and the 'influence' of AIMIM.
Dubbing the Asaududdin Owaisi-led AIMIM as the 'remote' that controlled the 'car' (TRS symbol) of Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, Joshi, a senior BJP leader, said only when the saffron party comes to power in the state, the liberation day can be celebrated officially.
He was speaking after hoisting the national flag a the BJP's Telangana headquarters here as part of the party's state-wide annual celebration the Liberation Day on September 17, when the erstwhile Hyderabad state merged with the Indian Union in 1948.
Joshi, the Parliamentary Affairs Minister, said TRS had promised before coming to power that it would hold official celebration of the merger day and expressed surprise at its present stand.
He said it was an official function in Karnataka and Maharashtra, parts of which were under the erstwhile Hyderabad state, but in the headquarters of Nizam where the agitation was initiated, the Liberation Day was not being celebrated by the government.
"It is due to vote bank politics, the TRS government is hesitating in officially celebrating Telangana Liberation Day and it is most shameful... because, Majlis (AIMIM) is riding in KCR's car. This is the problem," he said referring to the friendly ties between the two parties.
Alleging that AIMIM was controlling the TRS, he said: "The cars steering may be in KCR's hand but the remote is in Majliss hand.The remote has to be ousted and also the steering should be taken in our hands, then only we can celebrate Telangana Liberation Day. We have a long way to go and we are ready to struggle."
Underlining the role of Patel in the merger of Hyderabad state and over 500 other provinces with the Indian union after the country's independence, Joshi said he should always be remembered.
Virtually blaming late prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru for the Kashmir problem (Art 370), Joshi said "...had he (Nehru) handled Hyderabad also, I am not sure what the situation would have been in Hyderabad.
Till last one month ago, there was "problem of legacy due to Article 370 in Kashmir", he said referring to the scrapping of the special status to Jammu and Kashmir by the Narendra Modi government.
According to Joshi, it was Patel who took the matter in his hands and completed the merger of Hyderabad. Patel directly handled the matter and because of that Junagadh and Hyderabad fully merged with India, he said.
It was because of Patel, who hailed from Gujarat, India became one 70 years ago as he worked in integrating princely states, but Jammu and Kashmir was missed out, he said.
"Now from same Gujarat state, a national leader, (Prime Minister) Narendra Modi, has emerged whose birthday is today. Because of him with the abrogation of Article 370, Jammu and Kashmir is completely integrated with India," Joshi said.
Through political will, Modi and union Home Minister Amit Shah ensured the "dream of One India One Constitution, he added.
Joshi said 99 per cent of world was standing with India on the decision on Article 370, though Congress was speaking against it.
Taking a dig at registration of a case against two veternarians over the death of a pet dog at the official residence of Chief Minister Rao, Joshi said in Telangana there was lot of respect if a dog dies, but those who sacrificed their lives for the state did not get recognition.
"The respect is only for Majlis and dog. It is a matter of sadness. Hence, the BJP has to be expanded here, he said.
Later addressing a public meeting, Joshi said Chandrasekhar Rao was 'scared' to celebrate the Liberation Day as a state function.
"If you don't celebrate Telangana Liberation Day as a festival then KCR sahab, BJP will ensure it. If we take it in our hands then you will be forced to celebrate," Joshi said.
In a veiled warning to Rao, whom the BJP has been accusing of corruption, he said the Modi government would not tolerate anyone who indulged in graft and that leaders who ruled for 15-20 years in Haryana and Bihar were now in jail.
He also referred to senior Congress leader P Chidambaram, arrested by the CBI in the INX Media corruption case, and other top leaders out on bail.
Joshi charged Rao with not implementing central government schemes in Telangana.
Union Minister of State for Home G Kishan Reddy told reporters that for the past several years, Maharashtra and Karnataka governments had been officially celebrating Hyderabad Liberation Day in districts (parts of which were under the rule of the Nizams).
It was unfortunate, the day was not celebrated officially in Telangana, he said alleging it was due to AIMIM.
Reddy promised that once the BJP government was formed in Telangana after next elections, the Liberation Day would be officially celebrated across the state.
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