KTR spits fire on BJP, Congress

Hyderabad: As the date for Dubbaka byelection is drawing closer, the war of words between the ruling TRS and the BJP is reaching a new crescendo.

While the campaign witnessed high drama, TRS working president K T Rama Rao in an informal chat with the media said the TRS was sure of winning with a majority of one lakh votes as the people had seen the performance of the pink party during the last six years and how it had brought in revolutionary changes in the state which had helped it to progress at a rapid speed.

KTR said despite all the noise the Congress and the BJP have been making, it would not be a surprise if they failed to save even their deposits. He said the comments of the saffron party leaders during the election campaign were highly objectionable. He said the TRS leaders and party workers also can retaliate with similar language, but they were restraining themselves since that was not the culture of the TRS.

He felt that the BJP leaders should learn how to speak from Union Minister for Home G Kishan Reddy. If the BJP was so sure of its strength, it would have accepted the challenge thrown by state Finance Minister T Harish Rao, he added. The BJP, KTR felt, had no right to talk about the development in the state. The state has been progressing though the Centre had not been cooperative and had not even cleared the dues to the state. The BJP leaders could do nothing to put pressure on the Centre and get funds for the state. The BJP should release a white paper on Centre's help to the State since 2014.

"They do not have even the courage to accept that the money that was seized by the police from the house of relatives of their candidate M Raghunandan Rao was theirs."

"None of the MPs could get any additional sanctions even for their constituencies," he added.

"Can they show one good act they had done for Telangana?," he said.

The Centre had not even helped the state to tackle the recent situation arising out of the heavy floods in the state, KTR said.

"The BJP is less among the people and more on the social media and only know how to use Whatsapp to spread misinformation. If they do not change their attitude, the TRS will be forced to talk against the Prime Minister and Central Ministers. The BJP government at the Centre had failed in handling the economy during the pandemic times," he added.

Referring to the Congress, KTR said the party would not only lose the deposit but also see many desertions after the polls. Replying to a question on Revanth Reddy, he said, he had turned into a political commentator. It is also being said that he may cross over to the BJP.

KTR said Telangana was the only state to implement loan waiver to the tune of Rs 27,718 crore. In addition, the State government spent another Rs 28,000 crore under Rythu Bandhu directly benefiting farmers during the corresponding period. "The RBI report also claimed that around 95 per cent of the recipients of the crop exemption scheme were marginal farmers and small farmers. Despite being the youngest state, Telangana has been progressive and has emerged as a pioneer among the country's top performing states," he said.