Centre’s decision to celebrate Sept 17 as ‘Hyd Liberation Day’ hailed

Union Minister and BJP State president G Kishan Reddy and former Maharashtra Governor Ch Vidyasagar Rao on Wednesday hailed the Union Home Ministry for issuing a notification to celebrate September 17 every year as ‘Hyderabad Liberation Day’.
They thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah for the decision.
The erstwhile princely state of Hyderabad under Nizam’s rule was merged with the Indian Union on September 17, 1948.
The decision would make the future generations aware of the significance of September 17 and about the struggle for the liberation of the erstwhile princely state of Hyderabad under Nizam’s rule, he said.
Vidyasagar Rao, who was a senior BJP leader, said September 17 is officially celebrated in the districts of present day Maharashtra and Karnataka which were part of the erstwhile Hyderabad State.
It is regrettable that the Telangana government has not officially celebrated the day so far, he said.
Amit Shah had attended the celebration of September 17 organised by the Centre in Hyderabad during the last few years.
The Congress calls September 17 as ‘Merger day’ and the previous BRS government celebrated the day as ‘National integration day’.
The Centre on Tuesday announced that it will celebrate September 17 every year as ‘Hyderabad Liberation Day’.
In a notification, the Union Home Ministry said Hyderabad did not get independence for 13 months after India’s independence on August 15, 1947 and was under the rule of the Nizams.
The region was liberated from Nizam’s rule on September 17, 1948 after police action, namely ‘Operation Polo’.
“Now in order to remember the martyrs who liberated Hyderabad and to infuse the flame of patriotism in the minds of youth, the Government of India decided to celebrate 17th day of September every year as ‘Hyderabad Liberation Day’,” the notification read.
Meanwhile, Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) vice-president G Niranjan said the Centre had already celebrated September 17 in Hyderabad with Amit Shah attending the event.