Alluri Sitarama Raju
Alluri Sitarama Raju was born on July 4, 1897, in Mogallu near Bhimavaram in present day West Godavari district in Andhra Pradesh. By the age of 18, he became a sanyasi. During his teens, he went on pilgrimage and toured the various parts of India. He was moved by the socio-economic conditions prevalent in the country under British rule, especially in tribal areas.
Rampa Rebellion (1922-24)
The Madras Forest Act, 1882, restricted the free movement of tribals in the forest areas and prohibited them from engaging in traditional Podu shifting cultivation. To build a movement against the British in tribal areas, Alluri Sitarama Raju began to organize Adivasis in the forest area or Manyam of the Visakhapatnam and Godavari district, and prepared them to fight against the atrocities by the police, the forest, and revenue officials.
During the course of a two-year armed struggle (1922- 24), he launched attacks and conducted raids on numerous police station and killed many British officials. The first of such attacks was made on the Chintapalli police station in Visakhapatnam Agency area on August 22, 1922, with over 300 revolutionaries under the leadership of Raju taking part in it. Subsequently, similar attacks were made on Krishnadevi Peta police station and Raja Ommangi police station.
After a relentless chase by British forces, he was caught and martyred on May 7, 1924. He was cremated on 8th May, 1924, bringing the curtains down on his glorious fight against the British exploitative system.
His bravery and relentless fight against the British earned him the title 'Manyam Veerudu'. Every year, the State Government of Andhra Pradesh commemorates his birth date (4th July) as the State Festival.
Legacy
Alluri Sitarama Raju entered the pantheon of Indian revolutionary heroes almost immediately after his death. He is celebrated in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana as "Manyam Veerudu" - the Hero of the Forest. His image adorns public spaces, currency, and government buildings. The Government of India issued a commemorative postage stamp in his honour in 1986, and his centenary year in 1997 was observed with national celebrations.
In 2022, Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveiled a towering bronze statue of Raju in Bhimavaram, Andhra Pradesh, as part of the 125th birth anniversary commemorations. The blockbuster Telugu film RRR, released the same year, brought his story to a new generation of audiences across the world, imagining a fictional friendship between Raju and fellow revolutionary Komaram Bheem.
At his core, Alluri Sitarama Raju represents something essential about the Indian freedom struggle - the truth that independence was not won by one method or one movement alone, but through countless acts of courage, large and small, from people at every level of society. He stood for those who had no voice in the grand political negotiations of the age and chose to make their voices heard through the only means available to them. In doing so, he became immortal.
