'National Integration Day' May Be More Apt Than Mere Liberation: Asaduddin Owaisi

AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi on Saturday wrote to Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Telangana chief minister K Chandrashekar Rao demanding that the celebrations of Hyderabad Liberation Day should be celebrated under the title of National Integration Day.

He also said that the AIMIM party will participate in the Centre-led celebrations only when the event is renamed National Integration Day and not liberation day.

“The common Hindus and Muslims of erstwhile Hyderabad state were advocates of a united India under a democratic, secular and republican government. This is also reflected in the Sunderlal Committee report. The Committee was appointed by the Government of India to report on the situation after the merger of Hyderabad. The Committee also found that mass violence was committed against common Muslims living in these territories. I have attached the report for your perusal. The struggles of the people of the erstwhile Hyderabad state against colonialism, feudalism and autocracy are a symbol of national integration rather than merely a case of “liberation” of a piece of land,” Owaisi wrote in the letter to Amit Shah.

17 September marks merger of erstwhile Hyderabad State with Union of India. Wrote to @AmitShah & @TelanganaCMO suggesting that the day should be observed as National Integration Day. It’ll be an occasion to celebrate the struggles of people against both colonial & autocratic rule pic.twitter.com/A05hkJo5Sl

— Asaduddin Owaisi (@asadowaisi) September 3, 2022

In a similar letter to KCR, the AIMIM chief suggested a celebration be organised at University Women’s College, Koti. “The building was once the British Residency and was subject to a daring attack by Maulvi Alauddin and Turrebaz Khan on 17th July 1857. Maulvi Alauddin was the first prisoner of Kaala Paani (Andaman Cellular Jail) and Turrebaz Khan was perhaps one of the first martyrs of India’s War of Independence,” Owaisi said.