HYDERABAD: Demanding the resignation of BRS president and Leader of the Opposition K Chandrasekhar Rao as an MLA, several Congress leaders, including TPCC president and MLC B Mahesh Kumar Goud, Ministers D Sridhar Babu and Ponnam Prabhakar, staged a protest at Dharna Chowk near Indira Park on Sunday, citing KCR’s absence from Assembly proceedings and failure to raise people’s issues.
Addressing the gathering, Mahesh questioned KCR’s absence despite drawing public funds and asked whether his son and nephew were preventing him from leaving his farmhouse. He said KCR, as Leader of the Opposition, should attend Assembly debates and raise issues with the government. If he was unable to discharge his duties, he should step down and hand over the leadership to his son or nephew, the TPCC president said.
IT and Industries Minister D Sridhar Babu alleged that the BRS leadership had gone astray, saying that protesting on the streets and holding dharnas was not the proper approach in a democracy. He advised Opposition leaders to attend Assembly sessions and raise their queries directly, assuring them that the government was fully prepared to provide answers.
Sridhar also pointed to the Congress government’s welfare record, saying it was functioning with accountability and fulfilling its electoral promises step-by-step. He said new ration cards had been issued to all eligible beneficiaries irrespective of political affiliations and alleged that no new ration cards had been distributed during the decade-long BRS regime.
Taking aim at the BRS leadership, the TPCC chief said character and culture were more important than formal education and questioned KT Rama Rao’s contribution to the state despite his educational background.
‘People too questioning KCR’s absence’
Mahesh alleged that KCR had prioritised government jobs for his family members, while the Congress government had honoured Telangana movement fighters, including Gaddar and Ande Sri. He also mentioned the installation of statues of Mahatma Jyotirao Phule and Sardar Sarvai Papanna Goud in Hyderabad.
Crediting Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy and IT and Industries Minister D Sridhar Babu with attracting investments, Mahesh said the efforts would help Hyderabad compete globally. He further accused Union minister G Kishan Reddy of hindering Hyderabad’s development and defended the right to criticise the Union government without being labelled anti-national.
Observing that people too were questioning KCR’s continued absence from the Assembly, Transport Minister Ponnam Prabhakar said an employee could face termination for remaining absent from duty for 360 days and argued that elected representatives who failed to attend Assembly sessions should also face action.
He alleged that the poor were denied justice under the BRS double-bedroom housing scheme, recalling KCR’s remarks about where family members would sleep when visiting. Prabhakar said the former chief minister failed to provide even a single house to needy families, while the Congress government was addressing their housing needs through the Indiramma Housing Scheme.