Rayalaseema has been in forefront during Freedom Movement

For the present generation, freedom struggle is but a glorious chapter in the annals of the nation's history. A struggle which was nonviolent, pitted the moral strength of a subjugated nation against the might of a colonial power to emerge victorious as a free land. We present the history of the national movement in States and regional agitations, which proved to be a milestone in the country's freedom struggle. This is an opportune moment to recreate the past and learn from the experience of these events.

Clamour for freedom throughout the country and the patriotic fervour of the nation were reflected in no small measure in Andhra Pradesh. They were part of the nation's determination to get the British out of India and free the motherland from the shackles of foreign rule.

Prominent among these freedom struggles were the revolt in Rayalseema in 1800, No Tax campaign in Cherala and Perala in 1919, Rampa Revolt in East Godavari district led by Alluri Sitharama Raju in 1921, 'Simon Go Back' campaign in 1927 in Vijayawada and Ongole, Civil Disobedience Movement and Salt satyagraha in Dendulur district of West Godavari in 1930, the Left movement at Tenali in 1938, 'Quit India' movement in Tenali, Bhimavaram and Guntur, and 'Join India movement in Hyderabad and others.

In fact, the entire State was agog with the fervour for freedom so much that several of them had laid down their lives in the process.

Resistance of Poligars

The poligars of Rayalaseema backed by people of the region were a terror to the British. According to the data available, there were 80 poligars in Rayalaseema in 1800, who had refused to accept the authority of the Englishman. The then principal collector of the region, Thomas Munroe, ordered the poligars to lay down their arms and pay cess to the East India Company. They refused to budge and Munroe had to slog for 18 months before they could be brought under control.

A patriot poligar, Narasimha Reddy of Kurnool district, rebelled and attacked the treasury at Koilakuntla and marched towards Cumbam. Capt. Holt tried to nab him but Reddy managed to give him a slip and moved over to the then Nizam State. After six weeks, he was caught and hanged in the full view of the people at Koilakuntla.

Munroe then ordered the take-over of properties of all the poligars and introduced a scheme of permanent land settlement in the region.

Non-Cooperation Movement

Non-Cooperation Movement attained its greatest strength in the Andhra delta region, with outstanding leaders like Konda Venkatapayya, A Kaleswara Rao, T Prakasam and Pattabhi Sitaramayya among others. Among the highlights of the Andhra upsurge, as part of the freedom movement, people of the Palnadu area of Guntur district launched a non-cooperation movement to resent the attitude of the then government, in preventing them from grazing their cattle in the adjacent fields. The area was in the grip of severe drought in 1921, for a long time.

The people refused to cooperate with the officials and imposed a social boycott. When veteran freedom fighter Unnava Lakshminarayana and Vedantam Narasimhachari visited the area for assessment of the situation they were arrested. Resenting the police action, people organised a successful bandh in the area for a week. Konda Venkatappaiah, popularly known as 'Desabhakta', urged people to cooperate with the government but boycott the official socially. Kannaganti Hanimanthu was leading a no-tax campaign later was killed in police firing. Since then, the movement subsided.

The incidents that took place at Pedanandipadu in Bapatla taluk of Guntur district during the no-tax campaign as part of freedom struggle, rocked the British empire.

Parvataneni Veeraiah Choudhary, a veteran freedom fighter, led a non-tax campaign. While the officials were not collecting the land revenue, people were directed not to pay taxes. Harris, a revenue board member, sent by the government, reported that the situation was out of control and might lead to a revolt as people were told not to resume duties and pay taxes.

However, the movement was discontinued on the advice of Gandhiji, who wrote to Venkatappaiah to call off the campaign.