Hyderabad: 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 belonging to 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 party, Jana Sena, contested in the 2023 assembly elections and at 350 places in the recent municipal elections in Telangana. In 2018, the Telugu Desam Party also contested. "Who is stopping them from contesting elections?" KTR questioned.
Criticism of Pawan Kalyan's Stance
The BRS leader said it is absolutely wrong for a person who did not like the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh and did not eat for 11 days to want to hold a meeting on Telangana formation day. KTR asserted that Telangana's people do not need lessons on patriotism from Pawan Kalyan, as the state has a decades-long history of patriotism and fighting spirit. He also objected to the Jana Sena chief's comments that regionalism is more dangerous than terrorism. KTR asked, "Potti Sriramulu fought and 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 added that Prime Minister Narendra Modi diverted major projects from Telangana to Gujarat to develop his own state, asking, "Should we call that 'economic terrorism in the name of nationalism'?"
BRS Aims for Unity
The BRS working president reminded that although Telugus are divided, the BRS aims for unity among them. He recalled that the BRS opposed the privatisation of Visakha Steel Plant and expressed solidarity with agitating employees. Expressing confidence in returning to power in Telangana 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 Revanth Reddy in Kodangal.
Congress Government Called a 'Disaster'
Describing the Congress rule in the past 30 months as a 'disaster' that cheated every section of society, KTR dared Chief Minister 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 a 'futureless city' and said the BRS government would scrap it after coming to power.
