Fact Check: Telangana Congress govt skips floral tributes to Ambedkar statue on April 14? No, video is from 2024

Hyderabad: On April 14, Telangana observed Ambedkar Jayanti, marking the birth anniversary of Dr BR Ambedkar, the Father of the Indian Constitution. The 125-foot Ambedkar statue, near the Telangana State Secretariat in Hyderabad, has been a focal point for tributes since its unveiling in 2023 by former chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao (KCR).

However, a viral X post claimed that the current Congress government, led by chief minister A Revanth Reddy, neglected the statue by not offering floral tributes on Ambedkar Jayanti 2025.

The X post featured a video of the Ambedkar statue without floral decorations and was shared with a Telugu caption, which in English reads, “Revanth Reddy didn’t even offer a single garland.” (Archive)

The 12-second video showed people standing outside the entrance to the statue’s compound. A person can be seen holding the blue ‘Jai Bhim’ flag.

Fact Check

NewsMeter found that the claim is misleading. The video is from Ambedkar Jayanti 2024, and the Congress government paid tributes to the statue in 2025.

A reverse image search of keyframes from the viral video led to an X post by an account, Telugu Scribe, shared on April 14, 2024.

The post also criticised the lack of decorations at the Ambedkar statue, stating, “Another insult on Ambedkar Jayanti! Dalits are barred from approaching the 125-foot Ambedkar statue. Ambedkarites and Dalit groups are outraged by the lockdown imposed on the day of the birth anniversary. Representatives of Dalit and Bahujan organisations are expressing anger at the government for not even garlanding the statue and not allowing them inside.” (Translated from Telugu).

The visuals in both videos are identical, showing the same individuals, flag and surroundings, confirming that the video used in the claim is from 2024, not 2025.

Further, NewsMeter found that the Congress government paid tributes to Dr BR Ambedkar in 2025. An X post by Telangana Today on April 14, 2025, stated that deputy chief minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka offered floral tributes at the 125-foot Ambedkar statue on Ambedkar Jayanti. Additionally, a post from the deputy CM’s X account on the same day shared images of the deputy CM paying tributes to the statue.

The post from the news organisation also mentioned that ‘last year, the State government had closed the place for the public and did not make any arrangements, including floral and decorative lighting illumination at the statue, citing the election code of conduct. This triggered an uproar from different sections over the State government’s priorities.’

“The BRS has been demanding the Congress government to open the locks of Ambedkar memorial and permit general public to pay tributes to the architect of Indian Constitution,” the post said. According to the post, though, people were allowed free entry at the tallest statue of BR Ambedkar on Monday; there is no clarity on whether it will remain open for the public from tomorrow onward.

A report from The Siasat Daily, dated April 15, 2024, mentioned that the Opposition party had criticised CM Revanth ‘for not honouring the Father of the Indian Constitution.’

Hence, we conclude that the claim is misleading. A video showing Ambedkar's statue without decorations in 2024 has been falsely linked to Ambedkar Jayanti in 2025.