Kavitha demands white paper on Congress govt’s Rs 2 lakh crore debt

K Kavitha demanded a white paper on the Rs 2 lakh crore debt incurred by the Congress government in 18 months, alleging corruption and misuse of funds, and warned of Telangana being labelled an NPA due to mounting unpaid dues.

Hyderabad: Telangana Jagruthi president and BRS MLC K Kavitha on Thursday demanded that the Congress government release a white paper on the nearly Rs 2 lakh crore borrowed through bond auctions in just 18 months of its rule. Taking a jibe at the ruling party, she sarcastically congratulated Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy for achieving this “debt milestone” in record time, but questioned where the funds had been utilised.

“Despite the massive borrowings, not a single major poll promise has been fulfilled, including scooters for young women, enhanced social security pensions, or fee reimbursement for students,” she said. Kavitha also dismissed the Chief Minister’s claims that the borrowings were being used to repay loans from the BRS regime, calling them an “utter lie”.

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Addressing a press conference, she said that under the previous BRS government, Telangana maintained a clean financial record and even earned an ‘A’ grade from the Rural Electrification Corporation (REC) for responsible debt servicing. In contrast, the Revanth Reddy-led government was quickly gaining a dubious reputation by failing to clear dues of Rs 1,321 crore.

“During the BRS rule, the then Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao had set 2035 as the deadline to repay loans taken for the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Scheme. However, after coming to power, the Congress government sought to restructure the loan till 2040. REC not only rejected the proposal but also accused the State of defaulting for three consecutive months,” she said.

She cited a June 6 letter from REC warning that Telangana could be declared a non-performing asset (NPA) if the Rs 1,321 crore dues were not cleared immediately, potentially damaging the State’s creditworthiness.

Kavitha alleged that instead of focusing on loan repayments or implementing welfare and development schemes, the Congress government was indulging in large-scale corruption by paying advances to favoured contractors. These contractors, she said, were then funnelling commissions back to Congress leaders.

Referring to the Kodangal Lift Irrigation Scheme, she said Rs 1,200 crore had allegedly been paid in advance to Raghava Constructions, owned by Revenue Minister Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy, and to MEIL, despite no physical progress on the ground.

She branded Revanth Reddy as the “Emperor of Corruption” and announced that Telangana Jagruthi would soon publish a book detailing corruption allegations against him.

Kavitha also raised serious concerns over the Godavari-Banakacherla project, stating it was finalised after Revanth Reddy’s meeting with Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu. She said the project was being pursued without mandatory clearance from the Apex Council, as required under the AP Reorganisation Act.

“Even intellectuals from Andhra Pradesh are questioning the utility of the project. It serves only the vested interests of Chandrababu Naidu and Revanth Reddy while endangering Telangana’s river water rights. The project is being awarded to MEIL, which will again funnel funds benefiting these political parties,” she added.