Adilabad: Students of schools in the state would sing Jaya Jayahe Telangana Janani Jayakethanam… the song written by Dalit writer and poet Ande Sri, by the next academic year if the Congress comes to power following the December 7 elections.
The song reverberated throughout the region during the statehood agitation. It was expected that it would be made the state anthem after Telangana was formed, but it is said that Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao was averse to the song and therefore did not declare it as the Telangana state anthem.
Surprisingly, cultural artists sing the song on the dais during the TRS election campaign where Mr Chandrasekhar Rao is present.
Some of Mr Chandrasekhar Rao’s supporters say that the song was never made the anthem as it mentioned only 10 districts of the state, against the 31 it currently has after reorganisation.
Those who are opposed to Mr Rao alleged that he and some of his supporters were “anti-Dalit” and did not want to give prominence to a Dalit writer.
There was some hope that Jaya Jayahe Telangana would be made the state anthem as it was written by a Dalit, because Mr Rao did not make good on his promise of making a leader from the community the first Chief Minister of Telangana state. But that was not to be Mr Rao.
The Congress stated that its manifesto would promise including Jaya Jayahe Telangana as state anthem if it comes to power. This opens a door of hope for the song. Ande Sri, author of the song, is a native of Warangal district and stays in Hyderabad.
