Rahul Gandhi steers clear of Bhagyalakshmi temple politics in Hyderabad

The Bhagyalakshmi temple in Charminar, Hyderabad has become the locus of political activity in Telangana.
Rahul Gandhi at Charminar during Bharat Jodo Yatra
Rahul Gandhi at Charminar during Bharat Jodo Yatra

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi kicked off his Hyderabad stage of the Bharat Jodo Yatra by hoisting the national flag at the historic Charminar monument. The Wayanad parliamentarian steered clear of controversy by not visiting Bhagyalakshmi temple in Charminar which has become the locus of political activity in Telangana, which defines where one’s political inclination lies. Instead, the Congress MP paid respects to his father, late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi and hoisted the national flag on Tuesday, November 1. The Bhagyalakshmi temple, a tiny make-shift temple abutting the south-east minaret of the historic structure, in the recent days is being exploited by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for its political campaign in the state. 

The Congress party had carefully chosen the itinerary of Charminar in its Bharat Jodo Yatra, to communicate its message of peace and unity. It was here that late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, began his Sadbhavana Yatra in 1990, a campaign to promote national unity. “Thirty-two years ago, my father had started his Sadbhavana Yatra from Charminar. He sacrificed his life for the unity and integrity of India. Goodwill is the most unique value of humanity. The Congress party and I will not allow it to collapse in the face of any divisive force,” Rahul Gandhi had tweeted after hoisting the flag amidst a gathering in Charminar.

The Bhagyalakshmi temple in Charminar draws its significance because of its political geography. Located in a constituency dominated by the Muslim community, considered the citadel of AIMIM party (a party founded for the development of Muslims), the temple, which did not exist before Hyderabad state’s accession to the Indian Union as per the Archaeological Survey of India, has become the perfect landscape for the BJP’s to breach the state by pandering to the Hindu right. BJP heavyweights like Amit Shah, Yogi Adityanath and several other leaders make a mandatory visit to the temple whenever they come to Hyderabad. In fact, Telangana BJP’s walkathon – Praja Sangrama Yatra – kicked off from this temple. 

While it was speculated that Rahul Gandhi would visit the temple during his Bharat Jodo Yatra in Hyderabad on November 1, the former All India Congress Committee president retained the character of the yatra – a walkathon to fight against the ‘divisive agenda of RSS’ and hate politics. The former Congress president was given a warm welcome by Congress activists who had gathered in large numbers. The yatra has given the required impetus for the party activists to work actively for the party. 

The Bharat Jodo Yatra which reached Telangana nine days ago, entered Hyderabad on November 1. Rahul Gandhi walked from Shamshabad before halting at Bahadurpura, where he interacted with several civil society members including former Navy Chief Admiral Laxminarayan Ramdas (retd), Domestic Workers Union and Trans Equality Society representatives. The yatra then reached Charminar and proceeded to the Indira Gandhi statue on NTR Marg, where the former Congress president addressed a large gathering. 

Speaking at the gathering, Rahul Gandhi said, “The yatra is against hatred and violence. The BJP and RSS are solely working to spread hatred and violence. They are pitting one brother against the other. This will not make the country stronger but instead make it weaker. Instead of taking the country on a progressive path, the discourse is disappearing because of hatred and violence.” Rahul Gandhi said that no force be it rain, wind or sun, would stop the yatra (which began from Kanyakumari in the south) from concluding in Srinagar in the north. “This is not merely a yatra. This is India’s honest voice. In this yatra you won’t see hatred or violence; nor one brother verbally abusing the other.” 

Accusing the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) and the BJP of collusion, he said that the TRS had always supported the bills introduced by the BJP in the Parliament. “Do not  be fooled by their deception. Before the election, Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao plays a role [of fighting against the BJP], but he has a direct line of contact with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.” 

Speaking on the occasion, the newly elected president of the Congress party, Mallikarjun Kharge asserted to the jubilant crowd that the Congress party would form the government in the Union in 2024. “For how many days will the Prime Minister lie about providing employment? The youth dissatisfied with the BJP government are participating in the yatra. From Kanyakumari to Hyderabad and from Maratwada to Odisha lakhs of people will join the yatra. And in the upcoming 2024 elections we will form the government in the Centre.” 

Taking a dig at TRS chief K Chandrasekhar Rao’s national ambition, Kharge said, “You take care of your own home first. You are trying to weaken the party which is willing to fight from Kanyakumari to Kashmir. If you are against the BJP, then why did you support the farm laws? They supported the triple talaq. When we fought against the Bills in troduced by the BJP in the Lok Sabha, the TRS leaders would tacitly endorse it.”

Slamming the claims of the TRS of forming a non-BJP coalition in the Union, he said, “If anyone is capable of forming a non-BJP government, it is possible only under the leadership of Rahul Gandhi and the Congress.” 

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