On 17th September, MLA Raja Singh released the teaser of the upcoming Telugu film Razakar. The film is a period drama from the time when Hyderabad was yet to join India post-independence. The movie will showcase the atrocities Hindus faced at the hands of Nizam rulers and their paramilitary force.
In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Raja Singh wrote, “An excellent film titled ‘#Razakar’ is soon to be released, focusing on the tragic events of the # Hyderabad massacre during India’s struggle for independence, specifically targeting Hindus. I urge people to help promote awareness of this movie nationwide and contribute to its success.”
आजादी के समय हैदराबाद में रजाकारों द्वारा किए गए हिन्दुओं के नरसंहार पर एक बहुत बढ़िया मूवी आने वाली है…
— Raja Singh (@TigerRajaSingh) September 17, 2023
आप सभी देश वासियों से विनती है हैदराबाद में हुए इस नरसंहार को पूरे हिन्दुस्तान के हिन्दुओं तक पहुंचाए और इस मूवी को सफल बनाएं।
An excellent film titled '#Razakar' is soon… pic.twitter.com/1XKS3C6tMf
As per reports, the movie will showcase the horrors inflicted on the Hindus by the paramilitary forces known as ‘Razakar’ during the 1948 Hyderabad Liberation Movement. The teaser was launched on the occasion of Telangana Liberation Day. In the teaser, the emphasis remained on the background of the story.
Bobby Simha and Vedika are in the lead roles in the film produced by Gudur Narayana Reddy under the Samarveer Creations banner, and Yata Satyanarayana is the film’s director. Suddala Ashok Teja has written the songs for the movie, and Bheems Ceciroleo is the music director. The film is expected to release in 2024.
Operation Polo
After India gained Independence on 15th August 1947, the Nizam of Hyderabad Mir Osman Ali Khan was in a dilemma to choose which union he’d like his country to merge with and initially agreed to the ‘standstill agreement’ where the Republic of India would handle the external affairs and defence of Hyderabad but won’t interfere in the internal affairs. However, the state of Hyderabad violated this when it secretly loaned 15 million pounds to Pakistan and raised a semi-private military (Razakars) in the country.
Suppression of Hindus
Under the rule of Nizams, Hindus were brutally suppressed by the rulers. Hindus were routinely discriminated against due to their religion during their appointment to government posts and the state army. Of 1765 officers in the State Army, 1268 were Muslims, 421 were Hindus, and 121 others were Christians, Parsis and Sikhs. Of the officials drawing a salary between Rs. 600 and 1200 per month, 59 were Muslims, 5 were Hindus, and 38 were of other religions. The Nizam and his nobles, who were mostly Muslims, owned 40% of the total land in the state, showing the vast inequality in the distribution of wealth.
Frightened by the growing awareness amongst the Hindu population in Hyderabad, Nizam Khan ordered the formation of a semi-private army called ‘Razakars’ to suppress the agitations. The Razakars were a wing of the Majlis-e-Itihadul Muslimeen (MIM, or AIMIM as it is presently known). The Razakars managed to raise 1 lakh Jihadis under their commane within a span of days. The army managed to suppress the Hindus by mass-murdering and abducting Hindus in urban Telangana.
Formation of Razakars
The Razakars were intended to be the armed wing of the MIM (which is a present-day political party that goes by the name “AIMIM”) and uphold the Islamic domination of Hyderabad. By 1948, the Nizam didn’t want the growing public opinion of Hindus that Hyderabad should accede to India grow roots in the state, and ordered the Razakars to brutally suppress the Hindu population. Qasim Razvi was made the chief of the Jihadi force. The Razakars raised 2 lakh Jihadis in their force and raided Hindu-majority villages in Telangana.
In the book ‘Marathwada Under the Nizams’, historian P.V Kate records, “Some women became victims of rape and kidnapping by Razakars. Thousands went to jail and braved the cruelties perpetrated by the oppressive administration. Due to the activities of the Razakars, thousands of Hindus had to flee from the state and take shelter in various camps”.
Over 150 villages in rural Telangana were pushed to Islamic brutality, and over 40,000 civilians fled to the Central Provinces of India from Telangana for refuge. These refugees then proceeded to retaliate against the murderous Razakars through frequent raids to reclaim their land in the bordering areas of Central Provinces and Telangana.
Nehru and Patel
After receiving the details of the exodus of Hindus by the Nizam of Hyderabad, India’s first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, was afraid that any attack on the princely state would attract retaliation from West and East Pakistan. Nehru was hesitant to take the decision of storming into the state and annexing it. On the insistence of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, Nehru hesitantly agreed to the annexure of Hyderabad and ordered the Indian Army to annexe the state of Hyderabad and storm into the state from all fronts.
On 13th September 1948, the Indian Army launched an attack on Hyderabad; this operation was named ‘Operation Polo’. The Indian Army, in a 5-day battle, annexed Hyderabad from the Nizam and integrated it into the territory of India. Despite the Indian Army having only 35,000 soldiers dispatched for this operation, it suffered only 35 casualties, whereas the Hyderabad State suffered 5,738 casualties despite having an army of 2,20,000 soldiers. The Indian Army had a sweeping victory over the Nizam and annexed the state.
Aftermath and surrender of Nizam to India
After the embarrassing defeat, the Nizam of Hyderabad surrendered to the Indian Home Minister, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel and agreed to accede Hyderabad to India. Qasim Razvi was jailed from 1948-1957 after which he took asylum in Pakistan.
Razvi gave the responsibility of the MIM to Abdul Wahed Owaisi, thus letting the Owaisi family run what remained of the MIM. The MIM was banned for a brief period in 1948, after which it changed its name to AIMIM (All India Majlis-e-Itihadul Muslimeen) and contests elections to this day.
