It has been quite some time that one has heard about senior actress and Congress MLC M Vijaya Shanti.
Nobody remembers when she joined the Congress party, what role she is playing there and when she was nominated as an MLC. She has never been seen actively involved in the party activities.
But the other day, Vijaya Shanti triggered a major uproar in the Congress, when she raised issue of unfulfilled promises to Telangana activists and martyrs in the state legislative council, criticising her own party’s government.
Vijaya Shanti questioned the delay in implementing assurances made to those associated with the Telangana statehood movement.
Her intervention has triggered fresh political debate, with critics accusing her of making belated and politically inconsistent remarks.
The senior actor said it had been more than two years since the Congress came to power and asked when the promises made to movement activists would finally be fulfilled.
She said the government should take meaningful steps for the welfare of those who had played a crucial role in the movement for a separate Telangana state.
She argued that without the efforts and sacrifices of activists, the present political leadership would not have been in office.
She referred to several promises allegedly made to Telangana movement stakeholders, including 250 square yards of house site, Rs 5 lakh assistance for house construction, a government job for one member of martyr families, Rs 25,000 monthly pension, recognition and rehabilitation for activists and identity cards for movement participants
She questioned why these assurances were yet to be implemented and criticised what she described as delays in the form of committee-based processes.
However, her remarks have also reignited a long-standing and politically sensitive question: who exactly qualifies as a Telangana movement activist or martyr? The issue remains complex because no universally accepted and comprehensive list has been finalised so far.
Political observers note that during the Telangana movement, especially during the Sakala Janula Samme and other phases of mass mobilisation, large sections of the public participated in one form or another.
The Telangana government is now reportedly examining the issue through a committee mechanism, but Vijaya Shanthi questioned whether that amounted to unnecessary delay.
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