The state of Hyderabad was under the Nizam which included the whole of current-day Telangana, the Marathwada region in Maharashtra and several regions of Karnataka.

The Nizam of Hyderabad hoped to retain his sovereignty and opposed the idea of merging with India after Independence. Osman Ali Khan Asaf Jah VII, the last Nizam of the princely state of Hyderabad proclaimed Hyderabad as a sovereign state and this added to the tension and led to communal clashes.

The Indian government did not want Hyderabad to remain free fearing that it would lead to the country’s balkanization.

The then Home Minister Sardar Patel referred to the concept of an independent Hyderabad as “an ulcer in the heart of India which needed to be removed surgically.”

Hence, India decided to annex Hyderabad and named the operation “Operation Polo”. On September 13, 1948, Indian forces attacked Hyderabad. In a five-day battle, the Indian Army took Hyderabad and fully integrated it into Indian territory by decisively defeating Nizam.

Source: PIB