BJP, Congress exposed on pump set meters: Harish Rao

BJP leaders were for years lying on the issue, but Sitharaman had clarified on fixing meters to agriculture pump sets

Hyderabad: Finance Minister T Harish Rao on Wednesday said both the Congress and the BJP stood exposed after Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s disclosure of facts on fixing meters to agriculture pump sets.

BJP leaders were for years lying on the issue, but Sitharaman had clarified on fixing meters to agriculture pump sets. How would leaders like Etala Rajender, Raghunandan Rao and Dharmapuri Arvind seek votes now, he asked.

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Pointing out that Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao was the only leader in the country who said he would not fix meters to pump sets, Harish Rao said Sitharaman had not only exposed the BJP, but also the Congress, because the 12 States that fixed meters included Congress-ruled States such as Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh and Karnataka as well. This meant that if these two national parties came to power here, they would definitely fix meters to the pump sets, he said.

Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar had already exposed the Congress over its power supply claims by stating that they were supplying power for only five hours. Meters were installed in BJP-ruled states like UP, Assam and Manipur and in States ruled by the parties in I.N.D.I.A alliance like Tamil Nadu, Bengal and Kerala.
“Rs 25,000 crore is not important to us. The lives of 69 lakh farmers are more important to our government. If you vote for the BJP or the Congress, it is like agreeing to install the meters,” Harish Rao said.

Responding to Sitharaman’s comments on Telangana’s financial position, Harish Rao said that in 2014, the per capita income of Telangana was Rs.1.24 lakh, which increased by more than double to Rs.3.17 lakh in 2023.

“Telangana, which was at the 10th position in 2014, has now risen to the first position. It was possible because of the sincere efforts of the BRS government led by Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao. Why not accept this?” he asked, pointing out that this was when the national per capita income was only Rs.1.72 lakh.

“Why don’t you admit your incompetence? It is a shame that the Centre is talking about Telangana’s debts. When you came to power at the Centre in 2014, the country’s debt was around Rs.55 lakh crore. Now it has crossed Rs.155 lakh crore,” he said, adding that this meant the Centre was borrowing almost Rs.1 lakh crore every month.
“The BJP is responsible for devaluation of rupee. The BJP is responsible for unemployment problems. The BJP has taxed beedis. The BJP has increased the price of LPG cylinders from Rs.400 to Rs.1,200,” he said.