Telangana People’s Struggle and Its Lessons

Putchalapalli Sundarayya led the glorious Telangana armed-peasant struggle in the 1940s against the despotic rule of Nizam of Hyderabad and liberated many from the shackles of servitude under Vetti. He was an outstanding parliamentarian and the leader of the opposition in the first Parliament in 1952. With his slogan of Vishalandhra, Sundarayya could mobilize popular support for the formation of a united Andhra Pradesh in 1956. In his early life, he left college to join India’s freedom struggle under the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi. He was simple in his lifestyle, sincere to the cause of the downtrodden and waged an unrelenting struggle against social oppression and economic exploitation.