Hyderabad (state)

Hyderabad

status	former state
Capital	Hyderabad
founding	1948 (as a province)
Dissolution / merger	November 1, 1956 ( States Reorganization Act : Division between Bombay , Andhra Pradesh and Mysore )
surface	~ 214,000 km²
Residents	17.69 million (1950)
Population density	83 people / km²
languages	47.8% Telugu 24.3% Marathi 11.6% Urdu 10.5% Kannada 5.8% other languages
Location of Hyderabad in India (1951)

Hyderabad ( pronunciation ^{? / I} ; Telugu హైదరాబాద్ , Marathi हैदराबाद , Urdu حیدر آباد, Kannada ಹೈದರಾಬಾದ್ ) was a province from 1948 to 1950 and a federal state in India from 1950 to 1956 , which emerged from the former princely state of the same name . The state was dissolved in the States Reorganization Act in 1956 and its territory was divided among the neighboring states.

prehistory

→ Main article : Hyderabad (state)

Occupation by India

In 1947 India, along with Pakistan, gained independence from British colonial rule as a Dominion within the British Commonwealth . Little by little, the numerous Indian princely states joined the newly founded Indian state. The fact that this agreement was largely non-violent was mainly due to the great political skill of Jawaharlal Nehru's fellow campaigner and Minister of the Interior “ Sardar ” Vallabhbhai Patel . However, the Nizam of Hyderabad Asaf Jah VII , who ruled by far the largest Indian princely state, hesitated with this step and tried to maintain the independence of his state from both India and Pakistan. When he began to set up his own paramilitary police forces, the Razakars , who took action with great severity against unrest in the predominantly Hindu population of Hyderabad who wanted to join India, India finally took the initiative and occupied the in September 1948 in a brief military operation State of Hyderabad, which was incorporated into India on September 17, 1948.

The 16 districts of Hyderabad (1951)

Communist rebellion

The rebellion against the Nizam was also largely carried out by communist forces, which did not simply lay down their arms and ended the uprising when the Indian army arrived. The communist movement had its main focus in Telangana . The Indian military governor first tried to suppress the uprising with police measures. In the years after 1948, thousands of alleged sympathizers of the communist movement were arrested without this being able to be permanently suppressed. The communists had gained sympathy among the common rural population because they had abolished corporal labor in the areas under their rule, redistributed land and cattle, and endeavored to raise the level of the common population. The Indian government under Nehru recognized these problems in principle and took a more conciliatory course. Most of those arrested were released by 1950, a general amnesty was granted and some land reforms were carried out. Funds were made available to repair the destroyed infrastructure. However, as part of the measures taken to suppress the communist uprising, thousands of members of individual tribal populations were also forcibly resettled. In mid-October 1951, the Communist Party of India (CPI) and the Andhra Mahasabha called for an end to the uprising, which essentially happened. In 1952, the left-wing groups formed the People's Democratic Front in order to run under this roof in the upcoming elections.

Politics after 1950

Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru is greeted by the Rajpramukh and Nizam Asaf Jah VII during a visit to Hyderabad on September 28, 1952

Hyderabad became a federal state following the establishment and adoption of the Constitution of the Republic of India in 1950. Formally, the nizam remained chief in a position of governor with the title of Rajpramukh . However, actual political power was exercised by the Chief Minister, who was elected by the Hyderabad Parliament. The first (and only) parliamentary election took place in 1952. The strongest party was the Congress Party with 41.9% of the vote , winning 93 out of 175 constituencies. The second largest party was the People's Democratic Front (20.8%, 22 seats), a proxy party of the Communist Party of India , which had been officially banned due to revolutionary activities. The Socialist Party (11.4%, 11 seats) and the Peasants and Workers Party (4.2%, 10 seats) followed in third and fourth position . Independent candidates won 14.6% and 14 seats. A government was then formed under Chief Minister Burgula Ramakrishna Rao (Congress Party), which held office until 1956.

Result of the general election in Hyderabad in 1952

Political party	be right		Seats
	number	%	number	%
Indian National Congress	2,177,716	41.86%	93	53.1%
People's Democratic Front	1,080,092	20.76%	42	24.0%
Socialist party	590.209	11.35%	11	6.3%
Peasants and Workers Party	215.992	4.15%	10	5.7%
Scheduled Castes Federation	266,482	5.12%	5	2.9%
Other parties	113,405	2.18%	0	0.0%
Independent candidates	758.318	14.58%	14th	8.0%
total	5,202,214	100.00%	175	100.0%

Dissolution of the state of Hyderabad

As early as the British colonial era, there had been calls for a reorganization of the administrative boundaries according to linguistic and cultural criteria. After India gained independence in 1947, the Indian government under Nehru initially opposed these efforts, as it feared disputes over the new borders that would have endangered the unity of the young state. Hyderabad was particularly hard hit by these discussions because the national territory overlapped with three language areas: Marathi in the northwest, Telugu in the east and Kannada in the southwest. In addition, many Muslims spoke Urdu , especially in the larger cities . All four languages ​​were also written in different scripts.

Under constant pressure from public opinion, the Indian government bowed and Nehru set up the States Reorganization Commission in 1953 to make recommendations on future state borders. On September 30, 1955, the Commission submitted its preliminary report.

In its assessment of the state of Hyderabad, the commission emphasized that the former princely state of Hyderabad was a quasi “artificial” state entity that was only held together by the authoritarian rule of the Asaf-Jahi dynasty. There would be no real common culture. In contrast to the former British provinces ( Presidency Madras , Presidency Bombay , Central Provinces and Berar etc.), which were just as artificial, there was no real development of the country and its inhabitants in Hyderabad. The state is characterized by backwardness in all areas and also stands for a bad autocratic-feudal tradition:

“There is a general demand, with public support, that the state should be divided on the basis of linguistic and cultural affiliations. This requirement is based not only on linguistic arguments. It has been objected that states like Bombay , Madras and Madhya Pradesh, despite their heterogeneous character, have made a good deal of progress and have gained considerable experience in the functioning of democratic government. In the case of Hyderabad, however, it must be stated that the state has long formed an artificial political unit and that the improvement of the living conditions of its people can only be achieved if its three components are connected to neighboring advanced units. This step is also necessary to eradicate the undemocratic traditions that are said to be still deeply rooted in this state. […] It is important to remember that the three areas of Hyderabad known as Telangana , Karnataka and Marathwada were only united under the authority of the Asaf Jahi dynasty. Unity was not achieved through the free union of the people, but rested on the weak foundations of personal rule. Along with the democratization of the state, this artificial and artificial unit has actually already broken. […] The common culture of Hyderabad, like the unity of the state, is something grafted on from above. Obviously, if at all, it is only present in major cities and is in no way a common way of life for the people of Hyderabad. Outside of the cities of Hyderabad, and to a lesser extent Aurangabad , Bidar and Gulbarga, there is little that can be considered a common culture could."

- States Reorganization Commission : First report dated September 30, 1955

Despite this overall negative judgment, the commission did not recommend the complete dissolution of the state of Hyderabad, but essentially its reduction to the Telugu-speaking parts. The Marathi-speaking parts should be attached to the neighboring state of Bombay, the Kannada-speaking parts to the neighboring state of Mysore. The Commission's drafts were discussed intensively in the Indian Parliament. Ultimately, an agreement was reached on the complete division of Hyderabad along linguistic borders between the three neighboring states of Bombay, Mysore and Andhra Pradesh . This resolution was implemented with the States Reorganization Act , which became a reality on November 1, 1956.

Individual evidence

1. ^ The Gazette of India Extraordinary. (pdf) The Government of India, April 17, 1950, accessed on November 6, 2015 (English, digital archive of the issues of the Gazette of India at http://www.egazette.nic.in/ ). 
2. ^ ^{A b c} Report of The States Reorganization Commission, Government of India in the Ministry of Home Affairs, No. 53/69/53-Public. (PDF) Retrieved October 8, 2015 (English, final report of the, published in the Journal of Indian School of Political Economy Jan.-Dec. 2009, pp. 356–523, (unfortunately the end is missing)). 
3. ↑ ^{a b c} Report of the State Reorganization Commission 1955. (PDF) (No longer available online.) Formerly in the original ; Retrieved on October 16, 2015 (English, quick and dirty digitized original report , published by the Indian Ministry of the Interior, original text of the quote: “ There has been a general demand, with popular support behind it, that the State should be disintegrated on the basis of linguistic and cultural affinity. This demand does not rest merely on linguistic grounds. It has been argued, that States like Bombay, Madras and Madhya Pradesh, though heterogeneous in character, have achieved a fair measure of progress and have acquired considerable experience in the working of the democratic form of government. In the case of Hyderabad, however, it is contended that the state has long been an artificial unit and that the progress of the people who have remained backward cannot be accelerated unless its three component regions are attached to more advanced units. This step is also said to be necessary for the liquidation of the undemocratic tradition which, it is stated, is still deep-rooted in this state. [...] It is important to bear in mind that the three areas of Hyderabad known as Telangana, Karnataka and Marathwada were substantially united only under the authority of the Asaf Jahi dynasty. This unity was not based on a free association of the people, but rested on the weak foundation of personal rule. With the democratization of the State, this superimposed and superficial unity has already broken down in effect. [...] The common culture of Hyderabad, like the unity of the state, is something that has been imposed from above. It is apparent, if at all, only in important towns and in no way represents a common pattern of living among the people of Hyderabad. Outside the city of Hyderabad, and to a lesser degree Aurangabad, Bidar and Gulbarga there is little that could be called a common culture. ").  ( Page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.    
4. ↑ Taylor C. Sherman: The integration of the princely state of Hyderabad and the making of the postcolonial state in India, 1948-56 . In: Indian economic & social history review . tape 44 , no. 4 . Sage Publications, 2007, pp. 489-516 , doi : 10.1177 / 001946460704400404 (English, lse.ac.uk ).
5. ↑ ^{a b} Election Results - Full Statistical Reports. Indian Election Commission, accessed October 28, 2015 (English, election results of all Indian elections to the Lok Sabha and the parliaments of the states since independence).