Defiant for Dharna Chowk

On April 15, at its headquarters Maqdoom Bhavan, the Communist Party of India’s Telangana unit was teaming up with farmers, journalists, students, teachers, intellectuals, lawyers, the disabled, poets, transgenders and representatives of various political parties to take part in a dharna.

This disparate group has one common demand — the right to protest at Dharna Chowk, the Jantar Mantar of Hyderabad.

The designated place for all dharnas for over two decades, the chowk (square) near Indira Park is suddenly out of bounds.

The Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) government has barred people from holding dharnas at the venue, citing ‘inconvenience’ to the people residing nearby. But citizens’ groups allege that the ruling party is trying to muzzle voices of dissent.

Social scientist Haragopal calls it a paradox. “The TRS was born, brought up and fed by popular movements and protests. It is a paradox that it is shifting the protest venue outside the city. The decision is arbitrary. It reflects the growing authoritarian rule at the Centre and at the regional level,” he says.

A host of political parties and people’s organisations have come together to form the Save Dharna Chowk Committee and they plan to organise a month-long programme to force the government to change its mind. After several day-long protests by various organisations, the programme will culminate with a ‘Chalo Indira Park’ march on May 15.

Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhara Rao has shown himself to be impatient with dissent ever since he assumed power after Andhra Pradesh was bifurcated in June 2014. At meeting halls, the police would routinely call up the organisers to check who the speakers were and what the purpose of the meeting was.

Matters, however, worsened after the Telangana Joint Action Committee (T-JAC) called for a protest rally by the unemployed early this year; the government reacted by cordoning off Dharna Chowk. Hundreds of police personnel swarmed Osmania University and the chowk in a bid to scuttle the protest.

Now there is a blanket ban on all dharnas at the venue, leaving the space entirely to hawkers of fruits and vegetables.

The government’s unease with public gatherings became evident as early as in September 2015, when the Revolutionary Democratic Front (RDF) was prevented from holding a meeting to mark the 10th anniversary of the CPI (Maoist) Party. A year later, it clamped down on a ‘Chalo Assembly’ call given by the Telangana Democratic Forum, in association with over 200 groups, to protest the encounter killing of two Maoists.

Interestingly, the Dharna Chowk came into being about 20 years ago after the Telugu Desam government under N Chandrababu Naidu decided to shift out the then existing dharna venue at Lumbini Park, near the Secretariat building. Despite strong opposition from political parties, people’s organisations and intellectuals, the TDP government succeeded in its move.

“If the purpose of a protest is to attract public attention, and thereby bring pressure on the government to solve a problem, it was defeated by the government pushing it to a listless corner,” Haragopal explains.

Now there’s a sense of déjà vu, and little hope for corrective measures from any political party across the spectrum. He cites the example of the erstwhile Congress government denying permission to protesters demanding the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh, to prove his point.

Ironically, Dharna Chowk, the new protest venue, grew into prominence soon enough, and aggrieved folks of all shades turned up in strength to fight for their demands. It witnessed some historic protests that eventually brought down the Naidu government in 2004. It was also witness to the brutal suppression of hundreds of anganwadi workers, who were caned and dispersed using water cannons about 15 years ago.

And, of course, it was the epicentre of the decade-long movement for a separate State of Telangana. Scores of events were organised here by political parties, including the TRS.

Chada Venkata Reddy, the convener of the Save Dharna Chowk Committee, ridicules the TRS government’s move to drive protesters to the outskirts. “When we sought permission for this dharna, the police offered four locations — all 30-40 km from here. It is evident that the government doesn’t want any protests in the city.”

Supporters of the TRS regime contend that the government is so pro-people that there is absolutely no need for any protests.

Addressing the protesters at Maqdoom Bhavan, revolutionary writer Varavara Rao argues that denying people an opportunity to fight for their rights is worse than denying the rights itself. “It is a natural right of the people to protest against injustice,” he points out.

Here’s some poetic justice. CM Rao, who led the movement for a separate State, has now warned that he would hold a dharna at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi to get the State’s quota hike for Muslims okayed at the Central level. People on social media had a hearty laugh, asking the CM what he would do if Delhi decides to shift the venue.

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