Recently, Hyderabad again witnessed the word ‘settler’ being thrown around as a slur. It emerged as part of yet another political slugfest between the ruling Congress and the Opposition Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS).
It all started when Arekapudi Gandhi, a BRS MLA who defected to Congress on July 13, was appointed the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) chairman by the state government on September 9. The BRS slammed the appointment as convention dictates that the post be given to a member of the opposition party.
After the appointment of Arekapudi Gandhi as PAC chairman, BRS’ Huzurabad MLA Kaushik Reddy, while criticising him and others who defected from the party, referred to him as ‘Andhrodu’ (an Andhra native). He also offered them ‘sari and bangles’ to critique their alleged lack of manhood for leaving the BRS. What followed was a slugfest, with both Gandhi and Kaushik referring to each other as ‘brokers’ and making sexist remarks on how ‘they are men in their own right.’
Arekapudi Gandhi’s family hails from Andhra’s Krishna district. He had initially left the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) to join the BRS and later defected to Congress. A three-time MLA, Gandhi holds significant influence over people from Andhra Pradesh who constitute the majority in Serilingampally constituency and had settled there before bifurcation of the state.
The term settler was widely used as part of polarising political rhetoric during the agitation demanding separate statehood for Telangana. It was also used to signify political and economic dominance allegedly enjoyed by Andhra Pradesh natives in Telangana. But how did this term figure yet again in Telangana political discourse 10 years after statehood was achieved?
Polarising ‘settler’ rhetoric
After calling Gandhi an ‘Andhrodu’. Kaushik later said he responded in that way because the legislator had first first asked what business he, an MLA from Karimnagar district, had in Hyderabad. “I was only responding to what he said as if we are to tag people with geographies they come from Gandhi is also not technically from Hyderabad. Neither me nor my party has anything against Andhra people. This is a matter to be sorted out between Gandhi and me. We respect people from all states and want Andhra settlers to stay in Hyderabad,” he said. Senior BRS leader Harish Rao and other leaders belonging to the party also attempted damage control by stating that, “Everyone in Hyderabad is our people.”
This did not stop local media channels from hosting panel discussions on Kaushik’s remark and deliberating on whether this was an attempt by BRS to revert to its politics of Telangana subnationalism. A Q News video titled ‘Don’t stop them: Padi Kaushik Reddy v/s Arekapudi Gandhi’ discussed the fight and concluded that BRS was stirring up the Telangana sentiment. “They want people to again be divided along Telangana-Andhra lines. We’ve seen how that played out and a lot of young people died,” the anchor said.
In one of their morning debate shows, V6 News held a panel discussion with representatives from BRS, Congress and BJP titled ‘Telangana sentiment: BRS’ latest political strategy.’ This prompted BRS spokesperson Devaprasad to remark, “Hyderabad is mini-India. There is no need to bring up regional divides. We divided geographies, not people,” he said before focusing on Gandhi’s alleged iniquity.
Several channels have also slammed BRS’ top leadership for not condemning Kaushik's comments. While BRS leaders Harish Rao and KTR were compelled to issue statements that they have nothing against settlers and want them to stay in Hyderabad, they did not disavow Kaushik’s statements.
Following the Kaushik-Gandhi tussle, CM Revanth said the BRS was disrespectful towards the people who voted for them. "The party has always sought votes, seats, and notes from Andhra-origin people, especially in Greater Hyderabad limits. Despite the electoral victories, which can be credited in part to Andhra natives in Hyderabad, the BRS has no qualms insulting them,” he said while speaking to media persons in New Delhi.
After BRS was trounced in the 2023 Assembly elections by the Congress, cadres were unhappy and argued that changing the party name from Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) to BRS in October 2022, cost them the election. The change in name led to loss of the party’s identity, they felt.
Also Read: BRS workers want party to change name back to TRS, leadership not keen
But while the party name remains, BRS has reverted to an old strategy: focusing on Telangana pride.
Other than the jibe on Arekapudi Gandhi’s nativity, the BRS is taking on the Congress government for installing former PM Rajiv Gandhi’s statue at the state Secretariat. “When BRS comes back to power, Telangana Talli statue, a symbol of statehood pride will be installed outside the Secretariat. The Congress government’s installation of Rajiv Gandhi’s statue is nothing but insulting the self-respect of Telangana,” said KTR.
KTR also criticised the state government’s decision to install Rajiv Gandhi’s statue near a park named after united Andhra Pradesh’s former CM T Anjaiah, who is from Telangana and was rebuked by Gandhi more than four decades ago. Rajiv Gandhi, who was the Congress general secretary, had visited Hyderabad in 1982. Anjaiah, a Congressman along with party workers, welcomed him at the tarmac of the Begumpet airport. The welcome prompted Gandhi to dub the CM a ‘buffoon’ which till date comes up as a grave insult to Telugu and specifically Telangana pride. The incident led to the Telugu Aatmagowravam (self respect movement) spearheaded by NT Rama Rao (NTR).
The references to Telangana pride are however hardly new. Before KCR launched his fast unto death during the agitation for separate statehood, he gave out a cry: “Telangana waale jaago, Andhra waale bhaago” (People of Telangana, wake up; people of Andhra, run) in November 2009. The statement was a clear jab at ghair-mulkis (non-locals) referring primarily to Andhra populace residing in Hyderabad.
The polarisation also forayed into cinema when KCR’s daughter and former Nizamabad MP Kalvakuntla Kavitha in 2010 called for a ban on Jr NTR starrer Adhurs, as movie producer Kodali Nani was opposed to a separate Telangana. TRS (now BRS) party workers prevented the movie from being screened.
Ahead of the 2014 elections in Telangana, KCR was found in violation of the election code. “Chandrababu Naidu refuses to leave, says he will stay in Hyderabad. What business is it of yours, I ask? We don’t need Naidu’s Andhra party in Telangana,” he said. Ahead of the 2018 elections, CM KCR, who was running a second term, referred to Naidu as an ‘udumu’ (monitor lizard) and alleged that the TDP chief was creating a rift between Andhra and Telangana.
“I want to tell one thing to my Andhra friends: Claim yourselves as Telanganites, don’t brand yourselves as Andhra people. I have reiterated this many times. Has there been any problem in these four years between the two groups before Chandrababu Naidu came here? We have been living like brothers,” KCR said in 2018.
Also Read: KCR attacks Naidu, asks Andhra settlers to claim themselves as people of Telangana
The state identity theme has been used by other politicians too. As the state Congress chief, Revanth Reddy in 2023 said, “KCR ignored priests from Telangana and invited Andhra-based Chinna Jeeyar Swamy for the inauguration of Pragathi Bhavan. He seated Chinna Jeeyar on the CM’s chair and prostrated himself before the latter.”
Ten years after achieving statehood, politicians in Telangana are still using the term ‘settler’ to polarise citizens. While the Congress argues that BRS is against Andhra settlers and allege Kaushik’s recent statements seemingly underscore the belief, the Opposition party terms it an attempt to tarnish KCR and his party. They maintain that the Congress has no footing in Hyderabad and are trying to curry favour with the capital’s residents.
The Congress won the 2023 state assembly polls but lost 14 out of 15 constituencies in Hyderabad. While seven seats went to MIM and one to BJP, the BRS bagged six seats in the region.