KTR ups the ante on Munugode, says by-poll a fight between Modi’s arrogance and people’s self-respect

KT Rama Rao challenged the Bharatiya Janata Party to prove wrong his statement that the election was the result of a contractor's greed for a Rs.18,000 crore deal.

Hyderabad: Taking the political heat a few notches higher as campaigning for the Munugode by-poll gathered pace, IT and Industries Minister KT Rama Rao on Tuesday challenged the Bharatiya Janata Party to prove wrong his statement that the election was the result of a contractor’s greed for a Rs.18,000 crore deal. The by-poll, he said, was a fight between the arrogance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the self-respect of the people of Munugode.

Stating that the Bharat Rashtra Samithi was formed to take the Telangana model of development to the rest of India and expose the failed Gujarat model, Rama Rao said the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (now Bharat Rashtra Samithi) was not scared of the BJP government or its agencies like the Enforcement Directorate, Income Tax department or the Central Bureau of Investigation.

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Speaking at a meeting of the Telangana Rashtra Samithi Vidyarthi (TRSV) wing meeting at Telangana Bhavan here, Rama Rao said the TRS (BRS) winning the Munugode by-election would not have any significant impact on the party’s strength in the State Assembly. However, it would send a strong signal to Modi and other BJP leaders that unlike their Munugode candidate, the people of Telangana could not be purchased.

Endorsing Energy Minister G Jagadish Reddy’s statement on Monday, Rama Rao also offered to withdraw the TRS (BRS) candidate from the by-poll, if the BJP-led Centre was willing to spend the contract amount for development of the Munugode constituency. By buying a contractor, the BJP was hoping to buy the people of Munugode, he said.

“This by-election is a fight between Narendra Modi‘s arrogance and the self-respect of the people of Munugode,” he said, also challenging BJP candidate K Rajgopal Reddy to either give up his contract or take an oath on BJP State president Bandi Sanjay that he had not resigned from his MLA post for the contract.

Stating that both the Congress and BJP had joined forces in Munugode, Rama Rao called Komatireddy Venkat Reddy and Rajgopal Reddy ‘covert brothers’. “The elder brother, who is a Congress MP, is going on a tour of Australia when the younger brother is contesting the election on a BJP ticket. What more proof is needed? They are covert brothers,” he said.

Pointing out that the Centre was emulating Telangana’s schemes like Mission Bhagiratha, he said Mission Bhagiratha was rechristened as ‘Har Ghar Jal’ by the Centre.

“Though there is no proof of the water connections they have provided, they have certainly injected poison into the people,” he said, also ridiculing the ‘tantric’ allegations leveled by Bandi Sanjay and union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.

“Earlier, we had opponents like N Chandrababu Naidu and YS Rajasekhara Reddy, who had stature and could give a tough fight. But now, what we have as rivals are jokers who speak rubbish,” he said.

The Minister, appreciating the role of TRSV student wing leaders during the Telangana movement and after the State formation, urged them to continue working for the party’s victory by conducting door-to-door campaigns and interacting with the people.