The memories of the massacre by the Razakaars and the alleged members of the Nizam’s Army remain etched the minds of the victims. (Photo:www.srinivasweb.com)

MADDUR (WARANGAL): For 89-year-old Challa Chandra Reddy, the memories of August 27, 1948, are vivid. “August 27 is observed as a dark day in Bairanpalli. It was on this day in 1948 that 92 residents of Bairanpalli were slaughtered mercilessly. Women were raped and terrorised. Razakaars went up to the extent of making women play bathukamma naked,” he claimed.

“This village is not called Bairanpalli anymore. We have renamed it Veera Bairanpalli,” Chandra Reddy said. Describing how the villagers repulsed the attacks of Razakaars on Bairanpalli just days before Police Action, he lamented that over the past 69 years, the village has escaped the notice of successive governments.

“We have received no support at all from the governments over the years. The village remains as it was in 1948, with no proper facilities. Politicians come and make promises, but those are never fulfilled. We struggled to get freedom fighters’ pensions and many of us still have not got anything,” Chandra Reddy rued.

The role of this small village, 65 km from the district headquarters, in the Hyderabad liberation struggle is not known to many. The villagers had stood up to the Razakaars and forced them to retreat, twice.

The memories of the massacre by the Razakaars and the alleged members of the Nizam’s Army remain etched the minds of the victims. The ramparts of the fort in the village stands mute witness to the blood-curdling events.

Even today, there is no junior college in the village, they have to go to Cherial, 18 km away, for studies. The villagers have to travel 40 km to reach Jangaon hospital for treatment, since the village does not even have a primary health centre. The drainage system of the entire village needs immediate overhaul.

“Several politicians visited the village and promised to develop it. But the promises were never fulfilled. Almost all the 700 families in the village are eligible for pension. At present, only 25 get freedom fighters’ pension. The buruju (ramparts) need to be repaired and the names of martyrs must be inscribed on it,” said sarpanch T. Raja Mallaiah.