Telangana: P Sundarayya Memorial Lecture
THIS year’s P Sundarayya Memorial Lecture organised by Sundarayya Vignana Kendram was delivered by PDT Achary, former secretary general of Lok Sabha, on May 19, 2023 in Hyderabad. Addressing the meeting, Achary noted, “We must realise that a theocracy will lead to the ultimate disintegration of the society. There are two reasons for that. One, the presence of six minority religions the biggest of which has 200 million followers here, makes it almost impossible for a switchover to theocracy. Secondly, the social structure of the majority religion is so oppressive that the lower order will most certainly be kept out of the power structure. There will be perennial conflicts and confrontations which will weaken the country and cause eventually the disintegration of the country. Only in a secular democratic state there shall be social equality which alone will ensure unity of the country.”
Achary said, “Indian constitution is not merely a governing document, it signifies a total break with three thousand years of an abhorrent tradition which divided the people on the basis of birth and made them believe that man is not equal. This tradition which is called sanatana dharma tradition created in India an inequitable and unjust society whole a large section of population was treated as untouchables and socially inferior. It created a society based on inequality and injustice with scriptures sanctioning all kinds of abhorrent social practices. It was the constitution which gave the people of India the ideas of equality. Liberty, fraternity and justice and created the institutional structure for ensuring that the people enjoy them.
Achary added, “We do not know how things will shape up in the coming months and years. Rulers who have no obligation to history may turn the system upside down to create a false history in order to satisfy their own vanity. However, the long history of the people inhabiting this ancient land may not always be kind to them. Democracy and the whole constitutional system will remain safe only if people are sensitive to democracy. Many things happen around us which make us indifferent to our own freedoms. An insensitive generation is the greatest guarantee for a fascist take over. This seems to be one of the biggest challenges facing our secular democratic republic.”
Presiding over the memorial lecture meeting, BV Raghavulu, chairman of the Sundarayya Vignana Kendram Trust said the country will advance if only BJP is defeated in the next elections as the secular, democratic values are in peril under the BJP rule. He appealed the people to fight for safeguarding constitution, for saving democracy, secularism, and national integration.
S Vinaya Kumar, managing secretary of the Kendram, placed the report on the SVK activities for 2022-23 C Sambi Reddy, founding managing secretary of the SVK, felicitated PDT Achary. Former editor of Prajasakti, T Ravi translated PDT Achary’s English lecture into Telugu.
