Reacting sharply to Andhra Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan's remarks that Telangana is not a 'jagir' (private estate) of anyone, BRS working president KT Rama Rao asserted that Telangana undoubtedly belongs to its four crore people, the 'sons of the soil', who fought and sacrificed their lives for the state. Speaking at a meet-the-press programme at Somajiguda Press Club on Wednesday, KTR highlighted that in the 12 years since Telangana's formation, there has been no single incident between people from the two Telugu states.
KTR Defends Telangana's Identity
KTR pointed out that people from Andhra Pradesh, including Pawan Kalyan's own family, live in Telangana and conduct businesses like many others. He noted that Pawan Kalyan's Jana Sena Party contested in the 2023 assembly elections and in 350 places during the recent municipal elections in Telangana. In 2018, the Telugu Desam Party also contested. 'Who is stopping them from contesting elections?' he questioned.
The BRS leader criticized Pawan Kalyan for wanting to hold a meeting on Telangana formation day despite having opposed the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh and having fasted for 11 days. 'Telangana people need not learn lessons on patriotism from Pawan Kalyan, as Telangana has decades of history of patriotism and fighting spirit,' KTR said.
Regionalism vs. Nationalism
KTR also objected to the Jana Sena Party chief's comments that regionalism is more dangerous than terrorism. He cited the example of Potti Sriramulu, who went on a 58-day indefinite hunger strike for a separate state for Telugus by dividing from the erstwhile Madras state. 'Can we call that regionalism?' he asked. He further accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of diverting major projects from Telangana to Gujarat to develop his own state, calling it 'economic terrorism in the name of nationalism.'
BRS Aims for Unity
The BRS leader reminded that although Telugus are divided, the BRS aims to unite them. He recalled that the BRS opposed the privatization of Visakha Steel Plant and expressed solidarity with agitating employees. Expressing confidence in returning to power by winning 90 assembly seats, KTR said BRS supremo K Chandrasekhar Rao is the 'OG' of the party and will come whenever necessary. He asserted that the BRS would definitely defeat Chief Minister Revanth Reddy in Kodangal.
Congress Government a 'Disaster'
Describing the Congress rule over the past 30 months as a 'disaster' that has cheated every section of society, KTR dared CM Revanth Reddy to seek votes after implementing the 420 promises made during the 2023 assembly elections instead of talking about other issues. The BRS working president termed the Future City project as 'future less' and said the BRS government would scrap it after coming to power.
