Hyderabad, Dec 9 (PTI) Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy on Monday inaugurated a statue of 'Telangana Thalli' (Mother Telangana), a symbolic figure that inspired protagonists during the statehood agitation, on the Secretariat premises here.
The opposition BRS, however, attacked the Congress government for unveiling a new design of Mother Telangana, different from the one used by the regional party.
BRS working president K T Rama Rao alleged that the design featuring "Congress' hand symbol is an attempt to align Telangana's identity with the party's political agenda".
The design prepared by the government depicts Mother Telangana in traditional attire, while the 'Telangana Thalli' portrait of BRS includes ornaments and a crown.
Speaking at a grand event attended by his cabinet colleagues, senior officials and a large number of members of women Self-Help Groups (SHGs), CM Reddy said the installation of the statue is a matter of pride as the state came into existence after prolonged agitation.
He said MLAs, poets and other sections of society praised the portrait now finalised by the government for its resemblance to a typical mother. They told me to ignore the criticism from political parties as such outfits speak as per their policies, he said.
Taking a veiled dig at the previous BRS regime and former CM K Chandrasekhar Rao, he said, "One person, a family and a party" neglected the hope of four crore people that Telangana's culture would be "revived" in the newly-formed state.
The state's culture was insulted during undivided Andhra Pradesh, he alleged.
After the formation of the Congress government, the popular song during statehood stir 'Jaya Jaya he Telangana' has been declared as the state's official song, he said.
During the agitation, parties and leaders, including Ale Narendra, Vijaya Shanti and Chandrasekhar Rao, came up with their own designs of Mother Telangana as per their policies. However, after the formation of Telangana in 2014, the then rulers (BRS) did not unveil any official image of Mother Telangana and neglected the latter, the CM said.
"Telangana Thalli was discriminated for 10 years," he said.
The image finalised by the government represents the aspiration of 'bahujans' who fought for Telangana statehood, he said.
In a veiled reference to BRS, he said some may feel that these decisions would be dangerous to their political party's survival. "But, Telangana has not been achieved for the sake of one person, one particular family or a political party," Reddy said.
The government separately issued an order banning misrepresentation or portraying in a different way the image of 'Telangana Thalli'. The Government Order (GO) also said insulting, showing disrespect to the image of Mother Telangana in public places, online, social media would be treated as a crime.
The unveiling of the Mother Telangana statue and its design by the Congress government on Monday, coinciding with the birthday of Congress leader Sonia Gandhi, preceded politics over the issue.
The BRS on Monday launched an attack on the government, describing the statue installed at Secretariat as "Congress Thalli (mother)."
BRS leader Rama Rao found fault with the omission of state's floral festival Bathukamma and crown in the design finalised by the government.
BRS president KCR on Sunday alleged the Congress government had changed the design of 'Telangana Thalli' out of "vendetta" towards him.
Claiming that CM Reddy is not aware of the cultural significance of "Telangana Thalli", KCR charged that the changes are being made to erase his "mark" (on governance and others).
At the statue inauguration event, CM Reddy announced financial assistance of Rs one crore, a house site and a copperplate to nine Telangana poets and artists who made significant contributions to the statehood agitation.
A song praising Congress leader Sonia Gandhi for her crucial role in Telangana getting statehood was displayed along with others depicting the state's schemes and progress.