Harish Rao challenges Revanth Reddy to open debate on State finances, Rythu Bandhu

He said the Chief Minister was spreading false propaganda and misinformation to cover up his failures. He stated that under Revanth Reddy's leadership, the State's economic growth had stagnated, with the government failing to generate sufficient revenue or distribute wealth effectively.

Hyderabad: Former Minister and senior BRS leader T Harish Rao challenged Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy to an open debate on Telangana’s finances and providing the Rythu Bandhu financial assistance, while lambasting the Congress government’s failures on all fronts. He charged the Chief Minister for his incompetence, propagating falsehood and betraying the farmers of Telangana.

Criticising the Congress government over celebrating its one year rule, Harish Rao lashed out at Revanth Reddy for creating a negative atmosphere across all sectors in the State due to his immaturity, incapabiliy and negative attitude. He said the Chief Minister was spreading false propaganda and misinformation to cover up his failures. He stated that under Revanth Reddy’s leadership, the State’s economic growth had stagnated, with the government failing to generate sufficient revenue or distribute wealth effectively.

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Refuting claims on State debts, the former Minister pointed to publicly available data, including Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) reports, asserting that the total debt stood at Rs.4,26,499 crore during the previous BRS regime which he established in the Assembly itself. He called the Congress government’s economic strategy ineffective and immature.

“This government has no power to raise revenue and no sincerity to fulfill its promises. Hence, the Chief Minister continues to blame the BRS to prove himself better,” he remarked.

On the Rythu Bandhu scheme, Harish Rao held the Congress responsible for halting financial assistance to farmers. He said the BRS government deposited Rs.72,815 crore in farmers’ accounts in 11 phases, even during challenging times like the COVID-19 pandemic. However, Revanth Reddy raised false hopes among farmers, promising Rs.15,000 per acre but failed to deliver even Rs.10,000 per acre. He reminded that Rythu Bandhu payments were stopped by Revanth Reddy who complained to the Election Commission of India (ECI) before the last Assembly election despite the then BRS government readying funds for disbursement.

He went on to criticised the Chief Minister for not implementing the assurances given under the Warangal Rythu Declaration during the election campaign. He also stated that Revanth Reddy was a fraud who implemented crop loan waiver partially, but was claiming credit for its complete waiver. “BRS president and former Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao is a true farmer’s leader. Where are your credentials, Revanth Reddy?” he asked, daring the Chief Minister to stop escaping and instead, face the truth and answer the people, if he had the courage.