HYDERABAD: Congress leaders on Sunday accused Union Coal & Mines Minister and state BJP chief G Kishan Reddy of creating impediments in the government’s efforts to provide better living conditions to slum dwellers in Musi riverbed areas.
They also alleged that the BJP was adopting double standards with regard to Gujarat’s Sabarmati riverfront development and Telangana’s Musi rejuvenation project.
Speaking to the media, IT & Industries Minister D Sridhar Babu alleged that Kishan Reddy stayed a night in a basti after making “elaborate arrangements” to protect himself from mosquitoes and foul odour.
“Was there a need for mosquito repellents to learn the issues of the oustees? Kishan Reddy must have learnt the issues there by now,” Sridhar Babu quipped.
Alleging that the BJP staged “Musi Nidra” to get undue advantage in Maharashtra Assembly elections, he suggested that Kishan wait till the DPR on Musi rejuvenation is released to have a clear understanding on the project.
‘Just a photo-op’
Earlier in the day, addressing a press conference, TPCC president B Mahesh Kumar Goud alleged Kishan Reddy staged a “photoshoot” in the slums of Musi.
Alleging that the BJP and BRS were conspiring to stop the Musi project, he said that Kishan tries to help BRS whenever its graph declines.
Mahesh Kumar also challenged Kishan to come with him to stay in the Musi area for three months to understand the ground level issues.
“What did you learn from spending a night on Musi river bank?” he asked the BJP leader.
Responding to Kishan’s proclaimed readiness to sacrifice his life for the poor, the TPCC president said that the chief minister’s statement of crushing down opposition to Musi development is just metaphorical. He said that the BJP is actually implementing bulldozer culture in UP.
Stating that it was not right on Kishan’s part to release videos of him resting on a couch, MP Chamala Kiran Kumar Reddy said that a leader of his stature and that too a Central minister should have avoided such a stunt.