‘I am a citizen of India, I have work in every State’: CM KCR’s sharp retort to Devendra Fadnavis

Not stopping with that, the Chief Minister also challenged Devendra Fadnavis to replicate Telangana’s model of welfare and development

Hyderabad: Not mincing words in a sharp retort to Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis’s recent remarks asking what business K Chandrashekhar Rao had in Maharashtra, the BRS President said he is a citizen of India and has work in every State.

Not stopping with that, the Chief Minister also challenged Devendra Fadnavis to replicate Telangana’s model of welfare and development.

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Even while demanding the BJP-Shiva Sena coalition in Maharashtra to implement 24 hours free power and water supply to farmers, give financial assistance of Rs 10,000 per acre and insurance coverage of Rs 5 lakh programmes, Chandrashekhar Rao also wanted the Maharashtra government to procure the yield from farmers as was done in Telangana by setting up over 7,000 procurement centres across the State, besides implementing Dalit Bandhu for upliftment of Dalits.

“Devendra Fadnavisji, give me assurance and execute these works and I will stop coming to Maharashtra, failing which I will continue to visit the State,” he said to applause from the massive crowd at Kandhar Loha on Sunday.

Listing out what was wrong in Maharashtra and how these could be rectified with a committed approach, the Chief Minister said he had noticed large tracts of parched lands on his way to Nanded. This was even when River Godavari and Krishna originated from Maharashtra.

Farmers here were facing severe shortage of water and power for agriculture. Telangana was much backward than Maharashtra eight years ago and farmers were committing suicides due to acute shortage of water and power, he said.

However, due to effective implementation of welfare programmes and abundant supply of water and power, the farming community in Telangana was now happy. Farmers in Maharashtra should also be happy, he said. “Dhan (finance) ki karni se zyada, Mann (commitment) ki karni chahiye,” he said.

Pointing out that free lunch programmes were arranged at different places in Nanded to stop people from attending the BRS meeting, Chandrashekhar Rao said despite such cheap attempts, there was pressure from people in West Maharashtra to convene BRS meetings in Chandrapur, Solapur and other places, he said.

Taking a dig at the Maharashtra government, he also said the Nanded airport, which was supposed to be operated for 24 hours, was now being shut for night operations. “What does this reflect – development or backwardness of the nation?” he asked.