Joining Congress because it is ‘facing difficulties’, it is not opportunism: Keshava Rao

The 85-year-old leader was nominated twice as member of the Rajya Sabha twice by the BRS and he was also made the leader of BRSPP in Rajya Sabha too.

Hyderabad: Rajya Sabha member K Keshava Rao, whose departure from the BRS is being likened to backstabbing, has come up with a weird explanation for his joining the Congress. He argued that he was joining the Congress because it was in more difficulties than the BRS. “The Congress has given me more power and positions too. I served as an MP and a minister during my stint in Congress for 55 years. I am joining for the love of Congress”, Keshav Rao declared at a press conference at his residence on Friday.

The 85-year-old leader was nominated twice as member of the Rajya Sabha twice by the BRS and he was also made the leader of BRSPP in Rajya Sabha too. However, he chose to shift over to the Congress along with his daughter, who is incidentally the Mayor of Hyderabad. Keshav Rao wanted the newsmen to believe that he was unaware of his daughter’s plan to join the Congress. “I am not aware of when she is joining. She is old enough to take her own decisions”, Keshav Rao replied to a questioner.

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Asked what precedent he was setting for the younger politicians, Keshav Rao insisted that one should be loyal to the party. “I was in the Congress for 55 years. There is no political opportunism involved in this”, he explained.

Keshav Rao, however, reserved some good words for Telangana and the BRS leadership. Telangana emerged top in agri production, IT exports, per capita income and other fields under BRS rule. There should not be an iota of doubt about BRS Chief K Chandrashekhar Rao, working president KT Rama Rao or Harish Rao’s commitment towards Telangana’s development. They are extremely talented and BRS cadre was also educated, he said, adding that BRS had given him immense respect and valued his suggestions.

No State can match Telangana’s development in the last 10 years. Had BRS Chief merged TRS with Congress, Telangana would not have developed at this scale, he stressed in reply to a question over the BRS Chief’s promise to merge his party, if Telangana was delivered.

“Mere failure in one election does not mean end of the road for a party,” Keshav Rao said, however there were a few reasons for the BRS party’s loss in the elections.

Pointing out that BRS MLC K Kavitha’s arrest was illegal, he reminded that she had not committed any murder and there were allegations of economic offence against her. In that case, the probe agencies should check the books and prove any irregularities, he felt.

The Rajya Sabha MP said democracy was being threatened in the country and stressed on the need to fight against such attempts. The BJP was focusing more on cultural differences unlike the I.N.D.I.A block, which was promoting unity in diversity, he observed.