Hyderabad: Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveiled a 30-foot bronze statue of Alluri Sitarama Raju in Andhra’s West Godavari district Monday in honour of the freedom fighter’s 125th birth anniversary.
Speaking at the inauguration, Modi said it was an honour to be in a land that had “such a rich history of sacrifice, fighting spirit and stories of adivasi heroes”.
Raju, born into an upper-caste Kshatriya family, is also referred to as ‘Manyam Veerudu’ — loosely translated to ‘hero of the forests’ — and, as PM Modi mentioned at the unveiling, “a symbol of bravery and courage for tribals in the region”.
The inauguration was part of ‘Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav’ — the Union government’s initiative to celebrate and commemorate 75 years of Independence. It focuses on, among other things, giving due recognition to the contribution of freedom fighters like Raju and spreading awareness about their work.
According to political analyst Telakapalli Ravi, politically, the inauguration of Raju’s statue could be seen as part of the ruling BJP’s tribal outreach agenda.
In his speech, the PM said heroes like Raju are an example of the spirit of ‘Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat (one India, great India)’ that keeps the country united.
He spoke of the government’s efforts geared towards the upliftment of tribal communities, and how over 3,000 Van Dhan Vikas Kendras and around 50,000 Van Gana self-help groups are connecting tribal products and art with modern opportunities.
He also added that the Aspirational Districts programme, launched by the Modi government in 2018 with an aim to transform under-developed districts across the country, will greatly benefit tribals.
Speaking of the National Education Policy 2020, he touched upon how over 750 Eklavya Model Residential Schools, set up by the government to “impart quality education to ST children in remote areas”, were being established, education in native language was being encouraged, and said the number of forest products under minimum support price (MSP) procurement had increased to 90 from 12.
Although Modi’s message on tribal outreach was clear — especially considering the NDA’s presidential nominee, tribal leader Droupadi Murmu — the move to celebrate Raju was also, in a way, seen as a mini outreach to the significant population of the Kshatriyas in that region.
Raju, a Kshatriya known for leading guerrilla resistance against the British at a very young age, lived in the Visakhapatnam-Godavari tribal areas from the age of 18, Professor Kolluru Suryanarayana, former head of the history department at Andhra University, said.
“Rama Raju travelled through the tribal areas of the East Godavari, West Godavari, and Visakhapatnam districts, spent time in the hills along the Eastern Ghats in these areas, and was very moved by the level of discrimination and torture the tribals were subjected to in those areas,” he added.
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‘The hero of the forests’
Raju, said Suryanarayana, was born in 1897 in a village named Pandrangi, which now falls in the Visakhapatnam district.
“His father, a photographer, died of cholera at an early age, leaving his mother in penury. Raju’s education was disrupted because of lack of money. He is said to have studied in Rajahmundry and Ramachandrapuram, among other places. When he was 18 years old, it is said that he left his life and moved to tribal areas,” Suryanarayana added.
He said the exploitation of the tribals by the British — done via stringent laws on forest lands that threatened their cultivation rights, forced labour, and facilitated money extraction in the form of rent, indirect taxes — moved Raju to fight on their behalf.
Raju led the famous Rampa rebellion, also known as the Manyam rebellion, an armed resistance by tribals, against the British in the Visakhapatnam-Godavari tribal areas from 1922 to 1924, when, it is believed, he was captured by the British and killed.
“Raju had an aura among tribals. They believed he was an incarnation of God. Several of them for decades refused to believe that he died,” Suryanarayana said.
“He used plant-based medicine to treat them, he was courageous and, under his leadership, the rebels attacked the police stations and took weapons for their movement. He would even acknowledge that the weapons were taken by him for the movement to the police.”
Suryanarayana said Raju’s “charisma among those in the land of Telugu is such that many groups — Kshatriyas, the places where he studied, and the tribals — all try to claim him as theirs”. “He is an emotion,” he added.
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Modi govt’s double outreach
The statue of Raju — 30 feet high, weighing 15 tonnes, and worth Rs 3 crore — was installed by the Kshatriya Seva Samithi, an independent organisation.
During the inauguration ceremony, PM Modi also felicitated Raju’s nephew, Alluri Srirama Raju, and the son of the revolutionary’s close lieutenant Mallu Dora, Bodi Dora.
Alluri’s birthplace, Pandrangi, is almost 300 km away from Bhimavaram, where the statue was installed. Some believe Alluri’s roots are in a village named Mogallu near Bhimavaram.
“The region they chose — Bhimavaram, in the Godavari district — has a concentrated population of upper-caste communities, especially Kshatriyas. Electorally, they may not be in large numbers, but they’re a very influential community,” Telakapalli Ravi told ThePrint.
In a bypoll in the state last year, the BJP’s voteshare increased to 15 per cent from 0.5 per cent.
“The BJP used to hold three seats in the past in this region, mostly in the Godavari districts belt. So, choosing a historically-significant place related to Alluri Sitarama Raju, that also has a significant Kshatriya population, was a strategic decision,” added Ravi.
He also pointed out how the BJP, focused on its ‘Mission South’, could not leave out sister-state Andhra Pradesh after holding its National Executive meeting in neighbouring Telangana last week.
“The BJP has no goodwill in Andhra Pradesh because of the Centre denying it ‘special status’ after bifurcation, but they always keep saying how the party is serious about the state,” said Ravi. “So, if they held such a crucial meeting in Telangana and did not take Andhra into consideration, especially when they claim to have a ‘Mission South’, it would have sent out a wrong message.”
The Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribe population in Andhra has mostly rallied behind the ruling Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress Party (YSRCP). It won all the seven ST assembly seats in 2019, and also one ST Lok Sabha seat from the Araku region.
According to a report released by the Andhra Pradesh government in 2014, of the state’s 4.94 crore population, 17.6 per cent belong to Scheduled Castes and 5.3 per cent to Scheduled Tribes.
A member from a Kshatriya association, on condition of anonymity, told ThePrint that their estimates suggest the community comprises around 1.2 per cent of the state’s population.
In April this year, the Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy government gave in to a long-pending demand of the tribals and, as part of a district reorganisation exercise, named a district after Alluri Sitarama Raju.
(Edited by Zinnia Ray Chaudhuri)