Published Aug 25, 2022 | 6:40 PM ⚊ Updated Aug 25, 2022 | 7:01 PM
Telangana Chief Minister and TRS Chief K Chandrashekar Rao. (Supplied)
In a vituperative offensive against the BJP, Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao on Thursday, 25 August, described the BJP government at the Centre as a blood-sucking demon that has to be thrown out of power, lock, stock, and barrel.
“The BJP is a threat to the nation. I myself will take the lead to oust it. Everyone should come by in this effort,” the chief minister said at a public meeting at Kongarakalan near Hyderabad after inaugurating a newly-constructed integrated collectorate building built at a cost of ₹58 crore over an area of 44 acres.
Coming down hard on the BJP for destabilising democratically elected governments, he said: “The saffron party leaders are trying to pull down non-BJP governments in various states, in utter disregard of the mandate given by the people. The latest case is Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s statement that the BJP was conspiring to purchase his MLAs by offering up to ₹25 crore each.”
KCR, who recently took the saffron party to task in Munugode, added: “The BJP leaders have been saying that they would bring down the governments in West Bengal, Tamil Nadu and Telangana. They have already toppled the governments in nine states.”
The chief minister excoriated the leaders of the saffron party for driving a wedge between people of different faiths for its own electoral gains.
“These hatemongers are trying to upset Telangana, which we had built brick by brick. They do not want the state to progress. If we allow them, there is a threat to the peace and prosperity that Telangana has come to be known for,” said KCR.
“The state is galloping forward in all sectors. The per-capita income has gone up, farmers are happy as the state is helping them with Rythu Bandhu and Rythu Bheema schemes, and in the IT sector it is even beating Bengaluru — the Silicon Valley of India — in terms of employment,” he noted.
“I want all of you to know that this peace and progress is now under threat from elements that want to foment hatred,” the chief minister said, asking the people to choose between the BJP’s flames of communalism and the land where food crops abound.
He wanted the people to discuss among themselves the kind of facilities they have now in Telangana and whether they want them to be taken away by those whose sole intent is to ignite communal passions.
“In the Rangareddy district, one acre of land close to the main road is worth more than ₹1 crore. You have a government that takes care of all your needs. It provides free water, free power, an investment subsidy, and after growing the crops, it is again there at paddy purchase centres to procure all your food grains. This is what progress is and what we could achieve after fighting for 58 years for Telangana,” he said.
“I want you to understand that for one mistake done at the time of the merger of the Hyderabad state with India, Telangana went to Andhra Pradesh and it took 58 years and hundreds of precious lives to rectify the mistake. If you make one mistake now, society will continue to remain riven with tensions and the people would begin hating one another which creates an atmosphere where development takes a backseat. It would take a very very long time to rectify it again,” he said.
Referring to Telangana’s share in water from the Krishna river, he said the Centre’s silence for the last eight years proved that it was incapable of solving the issue.
“First, they asked us to withdraw the petition in the Supreme court, and even though we did it a year ago, it has not yet referred the plea to the tribunal for deciding the share of Krishna waters for Telangana.”
