HYDERABAD: BRS working president KT Rama Rao on Saturday alleged that corruption and irregularities in Telangana were now being exposed not only by opposition parties but also by legislators of the ruling Congress. Referring to Congress MLA Komatireddy Rajgopal Reddy’s remarks, Rama Rao said allegations of corruption by a ruling party legislator against the government and its leadership reflected the deterioration of governance in the state.
Speaking to the media after participating in Independence Day celebrations at Telangana Bhavan, he said the government had long dismissed corruption allegations by the opposition as political criticism. However, ruling party MLAs were now making similar allegations, he said, adding that such public criticism of the government’s top leadership was a serious indication of the situation in the state.
Reiterating his allegation that the Telangana Congress had been turned into an “ATM” for Rahul Gandhi and the AICC, Rama Rao recalled that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had made similar charges during his visits to Telangana.
He questioned why the Centre had failed to act despite such allegations being made by the Prime Minister.
Merely levelling corruption charges during elections or on political platforms would serve no purpose, he said, demanding impartial probes by central investigating agencies if there was substance in the allegations and that the facts be placed before the people.
Rama Rao said the Centre had a responsibility to investigate the allegations, establish the facts and initiate legal action against those responsible.
Referring to earlier Enforcement Directorate searches involving Revenue Minister Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy, the BRS MLA said there was no clarity on the subsequent action or the status of the investigation. He demanded that central agencies provide clarity and act impartially rather than being used for political purposes.
Dismissing Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy’s claim that he worked 18 hours a day, Rama Rao alleged that much of his time was spent advancing the interests of family members, relatives and followers by facilitating land, contracts and access to public funds.
He alleged that Revanth’s focus was on securing land and other benefits for Anumula Tirupathi Reddy, Kondal Reddy and others, and transferring wealth to his family, relatives and followers. Instead of merely claiming to work for the people of Telangana, the chief minister should tell them whose interests his administration was actually serving, he demanded.
‘Govt planning to scrap Kalyana Lakshmi’
Rama Rao also alleged that the government was conspiring to scrap the Kalyana Lakshmi scheme. He said the High Court’s judgment on the scheme was a consequence of the government’s negligence and criticised it for failing to adequately focus on a welfare programme benefiting lakhs of young women.
He alleged that the government was systematically scrapping or weakening welfare schemes introduced by the BRS government. “KCR Kit had been scrapped, Kalyana Lakshmi and Shaadi Mubarak had been weakened and Rythu Bima was being ignored,” he claimed.
Reacting to the developments involving NALSAR students, Rama Rao said young people in a democracy had the right to raise their voice when they felt their dignity or self-respect had been violated. He said institutions should respect students’ right to question those in authority and ensure that such incidents were not repeated.