KCR kicks off poll battle

​Hyderabad: Turbo-charging TRS campaign for the Assembly elections from Husnabad in the erstwhile Karimnagar district, caretaker Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao on Friday scythed through the Congress and warned people that if the grand-old party came back to power, the days of long power cuts, gudumba, playing card clubs and break down of law and order would become the order of the day.

Addressing his first Praja Aseervada Sabha, which is one of the 100 meetings in 50 days, Rao asked the people to be wary of the Congress which is thirsting to come back to power to loot the state once again. “The Congress which had systematically destroyed Telangana was now eager to continue to return to old ways. Be careful about the enemy of Telangana,” he exhorted.

He sought the support of the people for the Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) and said that he had started his campaign from Husnabad as he knew he would not face defeat if he begins any work in erstwhile Karimnagar district. Rao said that the Congress does not know how to run a government and on top of that, it would mortgage the interests of the state at the altar of Delhi. 

This apart, the Telangana Congress leaders spent all their lives at the feet of Andhra leaders before the formation of Telangana state. “When the then Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy said he will not give even one rupee to Telangana in the Assembly, these Congress leaders did not raise their voice, nor did they resign in protest. They made a show that they had resigned but signed files from their houses,” Rao alleged. 

Rao recalled Congress Legislature Party leader K Jana Reddy’s comments in Assembly. “Jana Reddy had said that he will seek votes wearing pink khanduva for TRS if the government overcomes power crisis and now Jana Reddy open your eyes and see,” he said.

He said if the TRS was voted to power again, the government would make Telangana as wetland of one crore acres. Stating that he was not satisfied with the salaries of the government employees, Rao said that if the TRS comes to power, the salaries would be increased to the extent the state’s finances allow.

Lashing out at the Congress for its misrule for 50-years, KCR said that the leaders of main opposition party were slaves of Delhi. “These leaders do not have conscience to speak. Their bosses are in Delhi, their tickets are also issued in Delhi. No work was done to benefit people. We cannot be slaves of Delhi,” Rao said.

Narrating the achievements of the TRS government, he said that the TRS created 31 new districts, converted Tribal Tandas into Gram Panchayats whereas the Congress party kept the work pending since many years. He said that the announcement of pension of Rs 2,000 by the Congress was because of his initiative of giving pensions. Because of their misrule during the last 50 years, the country is still facing poverty, he added.

On dissolution of Assembly, Rao said that the opposition parties had first said they were ready for elections any time but now they are not very sure. “There were seven months left for the end of five-year term of the Assembly. Yet, we decided to seek a fresh mandate. Our intension is Telangana should continue its 21.9 per cent economic growth rate and what is wrong in it?” he asked. He heckled at the Congress for running to Delhi when he announced dissolution of the state Assembly.

Chandrashekar Rao said that there were no encounters, no power cuts, no card clubs, no Gudumba, no drinking water problems in the State. “If the people re-elect the TRS in the election, the government, in the next five years will develop the state totally,” he said and urged the voters to support sitting MLA V Satish who is seeking re-election to the Assembly from Husnabad.