KCR deposes before Kaleshwaram commission

Explains to PC Ghose Commission KLIS' re-engineering, submits documents, and later visits MLA Rajeshwar Reddy who was injured earlier at his residence

Hyderabad: Former Chief Minister and BRS president K Chandrashekhar Rao deposed before the Justice PC Ghose Commission at BRK Bhavan in Hyderabad on Wednesday in connection with the inquiry into alleged irregularities in the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project. The questioning lasted nearly an hour.

Heavy movement was observed at the former Chief Minister’s Erravelli residence ahead of the proceedings. BRS MLC K Kavitha visited him along with her husband, while senior leader T Harish Rao had camped at Erravelli since Tuesday evening. Several other leaders joined them on Wednesday morning as BRS cadre gathered at his residence in large numbers. The police also increased their presence in the area.

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The former Chief Minister left Erravelli around 9.30 am and reached BRK Bhavan by 11 am. Nine individuals were allowed to accompany Chandrashekhar Rao into the building. Senior leaders, including S Madhusudhana Chary, Harish Rao, Vemula Prashanth Reddy, Mohd Mahmood Ali, T Padma Rao Goud, and others were among those present. Rao was seen carrying a set of files comprising documents submitted to the Commission.

Sources said Chandrashekhar Rao briefed the Commission on the importance of the Kaleshwaram project, the circumstances that necessitated re-engineering, the procedures followed, permissions obtained, and its socio-economic impact on the State. He reportedly answered all questions raised by members of the Commission and exited around 1 pm. Before leaving, he stood at the doorstep of his vehicle and greeted scores of party cadre waiting roadside.

Later, he visited MLA Palla Rajeshwar Reddy, who was undergoing treatment at a private hospital following a leg injury sustained in a bathroom fall at the former Chief Minister’s Erravelli residence earlier that morning. Chandrashekhar Rao then returned to Erravelli.

Earlier in the day, unprecedented security arrangements were put in place at BRK Bhavan. A heavy police presence was deployed, and all roads within a 200-metre radius were barricaded, restricting public access. Only employees were allowed inside BRK Bhavan, while visitors were turned away at the gates.

However, BRS cadre, led by party working president KT Rama Rao, flooded the area. Rama Rao, who led a large crowd from the MLA Quarters in Adarshnagar, reached BRK Bhavan but waited outside along with supporters who occupied the road outside the building. The crowd continued to grow amid chants of ‘Jai KCR’, ‘Jai Telangana’, and ‘KCR Zindabad’. The roads were cleared only after Chandrashekhar Rao left the premises.