Congress known for its violent past, greed for power, says CM KCR

Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao urged the public to reject the Congress as a lesson to leaders who lacked commitment to Telangana and its citizens

Hyderabad: Continuing his attack on the Congress, its nexus with violence and the party’s greed for power even as it was disintegrating from within, Bharat Rashtra Samithi president and Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao on Tuesday said the Congress had always prioritized power over welfare of the people and urged the public to reject the Congress as a lesson to leaders who lacked commitment to Telangana and its citizens.

Addressing public rallies in Huzurnagar, Miryalaguda and Devarakonda constituencies, Chandrashekhar Rao recounted events dating back to 1956 when seven individuals opposing the merger of Telangana with Andhra were killed in police confrontations. The people of Huzurnagar should remember the injustices suffered by Telangana during the Congress regime in erstwhile Andhra Pradesh, he said, also recalling the failure of Congress leaders to oppose the unfair distribution of river water during State bifurcation, which adversely affected Telangana’s farmers.

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Responding to N Uttam Kumar Reddy’s remarks, Chandrashekhar Rao said he had never claimed to have built Nagarjuna Sagar, but had rather highlighted the Congress’s failure to protect Telangana’s interests with effective management of water resources.

In contrast to the Congress, the BRS had fought for Telangana’s rights against the Andhra Pradesh government within the Assembly. “When the then Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy threatened that he would not give a single paisa for Telangana, none of the great Congress leaders reacted. But when I demanded water for drought-hit crops of Huzurnagar, with a warning to trigger bund breaches to supply water to our crops, the then State government promptly released water the very next day,” he said.

Chandrashekhar Rao also took a jibe at the intense internal strife in the Congress, dubbing it as a party with numerous Chief Ministerial candidates in Telangana. They were more focused on personal ambitions than the welfare of the people, he said, urging voters to choose a party that fulfills its promises over Congress leaders who looked for personal gains and contracts rather than the region’s interests.

“The biggest problem is that there are a dozen chief ministerial candidates in Telangana Congress. And almost everyone in the Congress is seeking votes by claiming that if elected, he or she will become the Chief Minister,” he mocked the Congress leaders, also pointing out how Congress leaders had gone into hiding when leaders of the BRS (then TRS) resigned from their MLA and MP posts during the Statehood movement.

Targeting the entire top rung of the Congress, right from Rahul Gandhi, TPCC president A Revanth Reddy and CLP leader Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka, for their plans to scrap the Dharani land records management portal, he said votes for Congress candidates would lead to revival of land issues for farmers in the State and also denial of Rythu Bandhu, Rythu Bima and other farmer welfare programmes.

Reiterating that violent attacks on BRS leaders would not be tolerated, the Chief Minister said it was by God’s grace that Medak MP Kotha Prabhakar Reddy had survived the knife attack on Monday.

“Yesterday, Congress assailants attacked our party candidate with knives. By God’s grace he is alive. We could save his life by taking him to hospital and ensuring timely treatment,” he said, asking the people to think carefully before casting their votes.

“The elections in which people will win are the real elections. Only then will all the people get justice,” he said, adding that for the same reason, the Congress, which never cared for the people, would not win the November 30 polls.