HYDERABAD: Reiterating that he will stand by the “kshudra pujas” allegations he levelled against BRS leader T Harish Rao, TPCC chief B Mahesh Kumar Goud on Thursday demanded that the former minister clarify why he visited the temples, which according to him were known for occult practices.
Addressing the media at Gandhi Bhavan in Hyderabad, the Congress leader also said that he neither insulted Harish Rao nor made any false allegations against the Siddipet MLA.
On Harish Rao’s legal notice, he said that he was not afraid of legal notices. “If necessary, we will fight it out in the court of law,” he said.
The TPCC chief also hit out at BJP MP Dharmapuri Arvind, describing his statements as “worthless.” He remarked that Arvind and Minister of State for Home Affairs Bandi Sanjay Kumar were “like children” before him.
Referring to comments made by Arvind on his height, the Congress leader said that former prime minister Lal Bahadur Shastri was also a short man but he successfully led the nation.
‘No differences with CM’
Responding to reports of alleged differences between the ruling Congress and the government over the recent Coordination Committee meeting, the TPCC chief said that the grand old party had felt that discussions on flagship programmes in the coordination panel would help in taking better decisions.
He, however, clarified that the chief minister was under no obligation to place every issue before the committee.
Mahesh also rejected reports of a rift with Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy, saying that “the party and the government are not separate entities”.
“Revanth Reddy is Congress chief minister. He is our chief minister. There are no differences between the chief minister and me. We speak over the phone every day, and I spoke to him yesterday as well,” he said.
Refuting reports of internal disagreements, Mahesh Goud challenged those claiming to possess audio or video recordings of him to make them public if they had the courage.
Direct discussions
He said there was no scope in the Congress for secret complaints, as party leaders discuss issues openly and directly with one another. Referring to the recent Coordination Committee meeting, he said it was conducted as a round-table discussion where everyone expressed their views openly.
Clarifying that AICC Telangana in-charge Meenakshi Natarajan chaired the review meeting as per protocol, he dismissed speculation over seating arrangements, explaining that the oval-shaped table had created a misleading impression in photographs.