Why Andhra Pradesh Formation Day is again a matter of contentious debate

CM Chandrababu Naidu didn't acknowledge the 'November 1' greetings from national leaders. His ally Pawan Kalyan too desisted from Formation Day celebrationsOn November 1, scores of social media handles from Andra Pradesh were agog with colourful posts and video clips celebrating the state’s Formation Day even as President of India Droupadi Murmu, Union home minister Amit Shah, Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and other leaders greeted people here on the occasion.But neither in state capital Amaravati nor the 28 district headquarters—or for that matter Lok Bhavan, the governor’s office cum residence—was there anything to suggest an event commemorating the special day. Political leaders and their parties seemed busy with voting for the urban local body elections held the same day. No flag-hoisting or rendition of Maa Telugu Thalliki (the state song) in schools and colleges either.For 58 years, November 1 was observed as the Formation Day of Andhra Pradesh, which was created in 1956. But under Telugu Desam Party (TDP)-led governments since the 2014 bifurcation of united Andhra Pradesh to create Telangana, the day has lost its relevance officially.The previous Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress Party (YSRCP) government had resumed Formation Day celebrations, but after the TDP regained power in 2024, chief minister N. Chandrababu Naidu discontinued the tradition again. “It is a travesty that some 55 million people of Andhra Pradesh have no date/day to commemorate their state’s formation,” said I.Y.R. Krishna Rao, former chief secretary of Andhra Pradesh, in a conversation with INDIA TODAY.Choosing not to accord any importance to November 1, Naidu didn’t even acknowledge the greetings extended by national leaders. His stance matched with that of deputy chief minister and Jana Sena Party (JSP) chief Pawan Kalyan, who too desisted from Formation Day celebrations.Their position contrasts that of leaders of ally BJP—state unit chief P.V.N. Madhav and the party’s Rajahmundry MP and former chief Daggubati Purandeswari extended their “heartfelt wishes to people” on the occasion.Former chief minister and YSRCP chief Jagan Mohan Reddy greeted people and paid homage to freedom fighter Potti Sriramulu, who Reddy said “sacrificed his life to realise the dream of a separate state for the Telugu people by wielding non-violence as his weapon and unwavering resolve as his strength”.THE CONTROVERSYThe Opposition YSRCP had earlier described the TDP-JSP’s decision not to observe Formation Day as a disrespect for Potti Sriramlu and an insult to the sacrifices of Andhra Pradesh’s founding figures.It was Potti Sriramlu’s 58-day-long fast unto death in 1952 in Madras that had sparked a widespread movement leading to the formation of a separate state of Andhra for the Telugus. Carved out of Madras Presidency on October 1, 1953, Andhra became the first Indian state to be formed on a linguistic basis.The larger Andhra Pradesh was formed three years later on November 1, 1956, by merging another Telugu-speaking region, Telangana, that was part of the erstwhile Nizam’s Hyderabad state.In its previous term (2014-19), the Naidu government had refused to observe November 1, stating that the date was no longer relevant since it originally marked the union of Andhra and Telangana regions, which were separated again by the 2014 bifurcation.Instead, Naidu organised a ‘Nava Nirmana Deeksha’ protest week from June 2 (date of the bifurcation) to June 8 (the date he took oath as chief minister in 2014), till 2018. The Naidu government spent nearly Rs 15 crore annually on various activities to highlight the “injustices” meted out to Andhra Pradesh during the bifurcation even as the state’s people were then bristling at the loss of economic powerhouse Hyderabad.Coming to power in 2019, Jagan Reddy scrapped the annual Deeksha week and reinstated November 1 as ‘State Formation Day’. Following the decades-old tradition, he hoisted the national flag and paid floral tributes to the bust of Potti Sriramulu.DIFFERENCES OVER DATENot just political parties, academics and intellectual groups too have continued to differ on whether November 1 or October 1 be observed as Andhra Pradesh Formation Day. The 1956 merger of Andhra and Telangana resulted from a “gentlemen’s agreement” between the leaders of both regions to safeguard the interests of Telugu-speaking people in a combined state. The 2014 bifurcation was result of Telangana leaders’ long held grievance against Andhra’s dominance in all spheres—jobs, water resources, etc.“Thus, November 1, 1956 is when the marriage began and June 2, 2014 is when it ended in a divorce, i.e. the separation of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. The present-day Andhra Pradesh is similar to what was from October 1, 1953 to 1956. So, it is only apt to observe the Foundation Day, shifting it to October 1, at least from now on,” said Krishna Rao, adding that he had had moved a file for the same when he was the chief secretary from 2014 to 2016 but in vain.However, Prof. D.A.R. Subramanyam, chairman of the Guntur-based Navyandhra Intellectual Forum, strongly opined that November 1 justified as Formation Day. “The Andhra state formed on October 1, 1953 included parts of Bellary, which went to Karnataka when Andhra Pradesh and Mysore were formed on November 1, 1956 as separate linguistic states. The Andhra state of 1953 is history. The present-day Andhra Pradesh was the expanse in 1956, when the Telugu-speaking part of Hyderabad state was merged with it. That 1956 slice is what remained when Telangana was carved out in 2014. So, November 1 should continue to be recognised as Andhra Pradesh Formation Day,” he said.Senior TDP and JSP leaders INDIA TODAY spoke to were wary of commenting on the matter even as they acknowledged that November 1 was historically a significant day for Andhra Pradesh.“Our party supremo’s reasoning is that Andhra Pradesh was let down in the bifurcation, not given its due share in assets. So, we too stopped celebrating the day,” said a senior JSP leader, seemingly not very convinced by his party’s position.INDIA TODAY reached out to Andhra Pradesh chief secretary Sai Prasad on why November 1 was not being officially commemorated as Formation Day, but did not receive any response.However, a senior official in the chief minister’s office said the matter was discussed extensively, including in the state cabinet in 2024, after the new government was formed. “All these complications, historical contexts and differing opinions on dates also were discussed. Instead, it was decided to accord utmost importance to Sri Potti Sriramulu and his sacrifice which gave us a Telugu-speaking state,” the official said.A government order had been issued in December 2024 to observe the death anniversary of “Amarajeevi Sri Potti Sreeramulu” on December 15 every year as Atmarpana Day. The birth anniversary of Sri Potti Sriramulu on March 16 is celebrated as a state function.“Honouring Potti Sriramulu is commendable, but a state needs to have its formation day. If not October 1, the Andhra Pradesh government should start observing it on November 1 from at least the next year,” argue Krishna Rao.The JSP leader quoted above hoped Naidu and his administration would reach clarity on the issue by the time Amaravati capital is inaugurated, expectedly in 2028.Subscribe to India Today Magazine- Ends