HYDERABAD: BRS working president and IT Minister KT Rama Rao on Saturday slammed Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar over the latter’s alleged letter to Foxconn Group chairman Young Liu urging the relocation of their Hyderabad unit to Bengaluru. Meanwhile, Shivakumar took to X (formerly Twitter) to deny the existence of any such letter to Foxconn and condemned the allegations.
Speaking at a lawyers’ meeting, Rama Rao claimed that the Congress would shift industries away from Telangana to Karnataka if it were to get elected to power in the state. Additionally, he accused the grand old party of actively disrupting Telangana’s development and establishing a new adda (an informal political stronghold) in Bengaluru, much like in New Delhi. He further alleged that large crores of rupees were being channeled to Telangana in an attempt to sway multinational companies into relocating to the Karnataka capital city from Hyderabad.
Rama Rao read out the letter allegedly written by Shivakumar to Foxconn, in which the latter attempted to persuade the company to move its manufacturing unit from Telangana to Karnataka.
The letter reportedly stated, “On behalf of the Karnataka government, I propose that you consider relocating the Apple Airpods industry, which you planned to set up in Hyderabad, to Bengaluru. When compared to Hyderabad, Bengaluru is known for its safety and has a well-established IT industry with a history spanning 50 years. The city boasts superior logistics capabilities, especially when taking into account the past incidents of communal disturbances in Hyderabad, which pose a potential risk to your business.”
It adds, “We anticipate forming a friendly government in Telangana soon, assuring that you will encounter no hindrances there. Hence, it would be mutually beneficial for your ancillary industry to make this move as well.”
Congress used to change CMs every 6 months: KTR
The IT minister highlighted how the Telangana government had held multiple meetings with Foxconn’s leadership, which eventually led to the company agreeing to establish its unit in Telangana. He added that the company had entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Telangana government in 2022, which would create employment opportunities for 1 lakh people in the region.
Rama Rao said that Shivakumar, during his recent campaign in Telangana, had suggested that the Congress in Karnataka was providing five hours of electricity to the agricultural sector, causing fear in farmers that the Congress would implement the same if they came to power in Telangana.
Regarding the political situation in Karnataka, he criticized the competition between Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar for the CM post, with AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge’s son, Priyank Kharge, also expressing interest in the role. He argued that the Congress had a history of engaging in camp politics and changing their CMs every six months, which, he said, gives rise to political instability.
Commenting on former AICC president Rahul Gandhi saying the electoral battle in Telangana is a contest between the Doras (feudal overlords) and the common man, Rama Rao said, “This election is between New Delhi’s Doras and the people of Telangana. In this fight, the people of Telangana will win again.”
He emphasized that none of the Congress or BJP leaders in Telangana displayed independent decision-making and instead operated under the leadership of Rahul Gandhi and Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He urged the public not to take risks by entrusting Telangana to such leaders.
On the other hand, Shivakumar took to X (formerly Twitter) to deny the existence of any such letter to Foxconn and condemned the allegations. He stated that the police had registered an FIR in response to the fake letter incident.
State Congress leaders also reacted to the alleged letter to Foxconn. TPCC vice-president Chamala Kiran Reddy denounced the propaganda against the Congress and accused the BRS of creating a fake letter to impede the victory of the grand old party in the upcoming Assembly elections. However, he claimed that the public had become aware of the ‘cheap tricks’ of the BRS.