HYDERABAD: Union Minister for Home Affairs Amit Shah has declared that if the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) came to power in Telangana, they would abolish “unconstitutional” Muslim reservations and celebrate September 17 as the Telangana Liberation Day on a grand scale at the Parade Grounds.
According to Shah, Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and Other Backward Classes have a rightful claim to these reservations, which he feels are being wrongly extended to Muslims.
During his first public meeting as part of the “Parliament Prawas Yojana,” also known as the “Vijaya Sankalpa Sabha,” held in Chevella on Sunday evening, Shah expressed concern that Muslims were being granted reservations in the allotment of double-bedroom houses, education and employment, which he felt was unconstitutional.
‘Furthering Owaisi’s agenda’
Shah also accused the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) of implementing “Owaisi’s agenda”. He also made it clear that the BJP was not afraid of All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM).In his address, the home minister accused the BRS of insulting the map of India in order to please the AIMIM. Specifically he claimed that the BRS showed a certain area as “Azad Kashmir” on the map, which he deemed to be an act of disrespect towards India.
He asked the crowd, “If the steering is with the AIMIM, can the car go in the right direction?” The crowd responded with a resounding “no”.He also took a jab at Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao’s ambitions to become prime minister by changing the name of the TRS (Telangana Rashtra Samithi) to the BRS.
“KCR is telling everyone that he wants to become PM. He thinks that by doing so, he will at least become CM. But the people of Telangana are cannot be fooled. The PM’s chair is not vacant, and KCR’s time in Telangana is up. So, what is the point of dreaming about the BRS,” he quipped.Shah alleged that the reason Rao changed the name of the TRS to the BRS was to distract people from the various scams involving his close associates. Shah claimed that the chief minister’s involvement in these scams had caused him to shift the focus to the BRS.
The home minister issued a stern warning to the chief minister regarding the arrest of BJP State president Bandi Sanjay Kumar, as well as the use of force against BJP workers. Shah said BJP workers would not be intimidated and would continue their fight until KCR was removed from power.
“There is complete politicisation of police and district administration happening here, and the Central welfare schemes are not reaching the poor. Through tax devolution, grant-in-aid and finance commission grants, Telangana has received Rs 1.2 lakh crore till 2022. Where has all this money gone? If the BJP forms government here and if PM Modi gives Rs 1 to the State, the State government will add 25 paise and implement various schemes here,” he assured.
Amit Shah highlighted the issue of politicisation in the police and administration in Telangana and expressed his concern about the lack of effective implementation of central welfare schemes for the poor. He also wanted to know how the State government utilised Rs 1,20,000 crore that Telangana had received through tax devolution, grant-in-aid, and finance commission grants until 2022. He raised concerns about the Telangana State Public Service Commission (TSPSC) question paper leak scam and demanded that the State government initiate an inquiry into the matter by appointing a sitting high court judge.
He also made it clear that if the State government failed to take appropriate action, the BJP, upon coming to power, would hold each of the culprits accountable and ensure they were put behind bars.
“By leaking TSPSC papers, KCR has ruined the lives of 35,000 youths, and they all are ready to teach him a lesson. Though there are 2 lakh vacant posts, after nine years, in a hurry they have announced filling of 80,000 positions. But even in that recruitment, they have leaked the question papers. KCR has not spoken a single word on the scam, who is he trying to save? Does KCR have the right to continue in power for a moment,” he asked.
Shah reminded the chief minister that the BJP grew stronger by rising from opposition ranks and would not be intimidated by BRS’ repressive tactics. He declared that the countdown to the end of BRS’ corrupt rule had begun.
KTR hits back at Amit Shah
Responding to Amit Shah’s demand for a probe by a sitting judge into the TSPSC paper leak, IT Minister KT Rama Rao asked why the BJP did not constitute a JPC to investigate the Adani case. Rama Rao said Shah had no right to demand for probe. Gujarat was number one in question paper leaks when Shah was Home Minister of the State, he alleged. In a series of tweets, Rama Rao said that the steering of BJP was in the hands of Adani. It was in reply to Shah’s statement that the steering of BRS was in the hands of MIM.