Modi’s 400 seats claim and BJP’s alliances are ironic, says Revanth Reddy

Addressing a public meeting after laying the foundation for the elevated corridor at Kandlakoya on Saturday, the Chief Minister recalled the BJP’s miserable defeat during the 2004 elections.

Hyderabad: Launching a tirade against Prime Minister Narendra Modi over his claims that the BJP would win 400 seats in the Lok Sabha elections, Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy on Saturday asked why the saffron party was stitching alliances with the Telugu Desam Party and other regional parties if Modi was so sure of his own claims.

From Andhra Pradesh, Odisha to Karnataka and other States, the BJP was forming alliances with different regional parties. If the BJP was so confident of winning the elections convincingly, why it was joining hands with regional parties, he asked.

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Addressing a public meeting after laying the foundation for the elevated corridor at Kandlakoya on Saturday, the Chief Minister recalled the BJP’s miserable defeat during the 2004 elections.

“The BJP launched the India Shining campaign and claimed that Congress was no match to former Prime Minister AB Vajpayee’s government. But the people elected the Congress,” he said.

Slamming the Prime Minister for failing to fulfill promises made to the people, he said fuel and essential commodity prices were shooting through the roof.

“Even the price of a quarter bottle of alcohol has shot up from Rs.50 to Rs.200,” he said.

Coming down heavily on BJP Malkajgiri candidate Etala Rajender, he asked why people should vote for the BJP leader. “Why would the people of Huzurabad defeat Etala in the Assembly elections if he had got funds from Central government?” he said.

The Chief Minister was also critical of BRS leaders for demanding the State government to take up repair works at Medigadda. Unless experts and officials conduct inspections and make their recommendations, how could the repair works be executed, he asked, adding that if works were taken up in a hurry, it could affect the structures further.

Reacting to BRS MLC K Kavitha’s demands on women registration and staging dharna, the Chief Minister said the Congress believed in democracy and permitted her to protest. In the 28,000 government jobs that were offered recently, 43 per cent were given to women, he said.

He also accused the previous government of neglecting development of Medchal-Malkajgiri constituency. While lands in Puppalguda, Kokapet and other areas were being sold for Rs.100 crore per acre, land in Medchal was not sold for even Rs.10 crore, he said.

“We do not have MLAs here and if the Congress does not win the Medchal-Malkajgiri MP seat, how can we develop this constituency?” he said, adding that the party high command would announce the Congress candidate for the constituency on Wednesday or Thursday.