“Why are you taking out a rallies in Hyderabad?” asks KTR
NAVEENA GHANATE
Hyderabad
Even though Hyderabad is the common capital for 10 years for both Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, Industries Minister KT Rama Rao while responding to a question by ‘The Pioneer’ at a press meet on Tuesday said, “What is happening in Andhra Pradesh has no consequences in Telangana or its people.
It is a political issue of another state. What happens in Karnataka, Tamil Nadu or Andhra Pradesh or Chhattisgarh has no consequence in Telangana.
If someone wants to come here and do drama, I would say “Begani Shaadi mein Abdullah Deewana.”
He added that TDP Chief Chandrababu Naidu is fighting legally and the matter is sub judice.
“Why are you taking out a rally in Hyderabad? Today you will do, tomorrow the opposition will do.
Should the issues of neighbours be sorted out in Hyderabad? Conduct rallies in Rajahmundry where Chandrababu is jailed.
We are running the government here. What if there is a law and order issue? Don’t they have Vijayawada, Amaravati, Rajahmundry and Kurnool? Who is stopping them? Both political parties have no place here in Telangana,” KTR said.
“I am a friend of Lokesh, Jagan and Pawan. I have no issues with AP and I need not go to war for them. We are happy in Hyderabad and those from AP too are happy. Lokesh called me for permission for rallies through his friend. I said what will happen to law and order. Even during the Telangana agitation, there were no rallies in the IT corridor. That government never allowed. We are trying to make sure that the economy is not destroyed. Lots of Andhra brothers are investing in Hyderabad. If their investments and future returns should be good Hyderabad must be peaceful. We took a stand like that,” KTR said. “If any individual of our party has taken a stand it is theirs and not our party. As the BRS working president I am saying it is a political battle between two parties,” KTR clarified.
“Everyone is united in Hyderabad and the people of Andhra Pradesh are happy here. Why instigate them,” KTR said.
Meanwhile, he avoided questions on Group-1 prelims.
When asked about Telangana Governor Dr Tamilisai Soundararajan rejecting the government’s proposal to nominate BRS leaders Dasoju Sravan Kumar and K. Satyanarayana to the Legislative Council in the Governor’s Quota, KTR said that the Government has the right to nominate people of its choice as MLCs and the Governor has to approve it.
“Modi is undemocratic and so are his agents,” said KTR. He also said that the Governor was the Tamil Nadu BJP President when she was nominated as the Governor of Telangana.
He said that Prof. Sravan Dasoju had taken part in various movements and was an intellectual and K. Satyanarayana was a national trade union leader. We did not expect her to reject their nominations, he added.
“She used the word unfit. But who is unfit? You or your Modi?” asked KTR. He condemned the Governor’s attitude and said she was more a BJP leader than a Governor.
KTR also mentioned the names of BJP and Congress leaders who were nominated as MLCs in the Governor’s Quota in various states. He also said that both national parties work in coordination when it comes to nominating their leaders but they have a problem with the nomination of leaders who fought for Telangana’s statehood.
When asked to respond to Union Minister Kishan Reddy’s statements on the same issue, KTR said that Kishan is the most unfit Union Minister as he could not complete the construction of a flyover in his own constituency.
“He is someone who ran away without resigning during the Telangana movement. It is a waste of time to talk about him,” he added.
When asked about the Congress hoping to win Telangana elections, KTR said that Rahul Gandhi himself said that the Congress will ‘probably’ win Telangana as he himself is not sure.
Ahead of Modi’s visit, KTR asked him to declare the Palamuru Rangareddy Lift Irrigation project as a national project.
He said Modi is coming to hunt for votes in Telangana. “Clean your sins and at least now after 9.5 years give the national project tag to the Palamuru Rangareddy Lift Irrigation project,” he said.
He said the BJP won’t get its deposit in 110 seats and that the BJP will lose in 2023 just like it did in 2014 and 2018.
He said that Modi had made similar statements inside Parliament and on various other occasions unnecessarily which has hurt the sentiments of Telangana. He said that the Prime Minister and the BJP have only hatred towards Telangana.
He also said that Modi should apologise to the people of Telangana for continuously insulting them.
KTR said that the Modi government did not honour the promises made in the AP Reorganisation Act 2014. “Whenever they come to Telangana, they come with empty hands and they should be prepared to go back with no votes,” he said.
The Prime Minister has no right to step into Palamuru considering the injustices he did to the people of that region, KTR said.
He recalled how KCR, within a month of forming the government in 2014 reached out to the Prime Minister requesting the national project tag for either the Kaleshwaram Project or the Palamuru Lift Irrigation Scheme (PLIS).
“They gave the national project tag to Upper Bhadra in Karnataka and Polavaram in Andhra Pradesh but ignored the Palamuru Project,” said KTR.
He added that the Modi government was never interested in resolving the Krishna water dispute which was a huge injustice done to Telangana.
The Prime Minister is visiting Mahbubnagar only to ask for votes. At least now, the PM should give the national project tag to the Palamuru project, said KTR.
He said that the discussion on ‘One Nation-One Election was a poll gimmick by the Prime Minister to divert public attention from core issues.
The PM promised a 5 trillion economy, a house for everyone with clean drinking water, bullet trains and whatnot. But none was fulfilled, said KTR. “He is the most incompetent PM independent India has seen,” KTR said.
KTR also responded on the delimitation of Lok Sabha seats and the distribution of Central funds to states based on population and said it was a matter of concern for south Indian states.
“If you think you can suppress our voice in Parliament you will see an uproar in the south,” said KTR.
