HYDERABAD: A post on X (formerly Twitter) by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday set off a whirlwind in the political circles in Telangana, with the ruling Congress defending itself while the main Opposition parties BRS and BJP trying to twist the proverbial knife.
Reacting to Modi’s post, Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy said that the prime minister was misinformed about the implementation of promises by the Congress government and proceeded to list the achievements of his regime over the last 11 months. “In the last 11 months, the Congress government has reversed the air of gloom and despair under the BRS and lifted the darkness. Like the morning sun, Telangana is now rising,” Revanth said, adding that every promise made to the people by the Congress was a sacred commitment.
In his post, Modi had said that under the Congress governments, the developmental trajectory and fiscal health of Telangana, Himachal Pradesh and Karnataka was turning from bad to worse. “There are several misconceptions and factual errors in the PM’s statement about Telangana and the state government,” Revanth countered.
He said that in the last 11 months, women have saved Rs 3,433.36 crore as they don’t have to pay a single rupee on travel. Women have undertaken over 101 crore free bus trips across the state, the CM said. , He said that the state government has waived crop loans to the tune of Rs 18,000 crore benefiting about 22 lakh farmers.
Being blessed by women: CM
“Women are blessing us because they get free electricity, with no domestic power charge for their homes up to 200 units. They are delighted that while they suffer high prices of LPG cylinders in BJP-ruled states, they get a cylinder at only Rs 500 a unit in Congress-ruled Telangana. In our tenure till now, over 1.31 crore LPG refills have taken place, with over 42,90,246 beneficiaries smiling their way to the kitchen every day,” Revanth wrote
He said that the government has provided jobs for over 50,000 eligible youth, a record unmatched by any BJP-ruled state. Accusing the previous BRS government of ignoring school children, the chief minister said that his government has raised diet and cosmetic charges by over 40%.
“We are cleaning and rejuvenating our River Musi that was neglected in the past. We are also protecting our lakes, nalas and other precious water bodies, encroached upon and destroyed with abandon in the last 10 years not a single inch of lake has been encroached upon since Congress came to power. And also we are creating a Future City and a master plan is being finalised. We have set the ball rolling for the Young India Skill University, Young India Sports University and Young India Integrated Residential schools,” Revanth said.
Opposition unconvinced
However, BJP leader Bandi Sanjay and BRS MLA T Harish Rao rebutted the Chief Minister’s claims.
Taking to X, Sanjay alleged that Telangana was not rising but facing shadows of unkept promises. He wrote: “List of fake promises of Congress is never ending and won’t be fulfilled in this lifetime. Instead of reconstruction, you are causing destruction and pushing Telangana into darkness like never before.”
He alleged that the women were being raped and murders happening in broad daylight. “Temples are under attack and Congress has completely failed to maintain law and order,” Sanjay wrote.
Referring to the chief minister, he alleged: “Your claim of delivering on six guarantees is hollow. Let alone 100 days, even 1,000 days or 10000 days wouldn’t suffice to fulfil them. You cheated entire Telangana. You have `1.5 lakh crore for Musi project but no money for implementing six guarantees. Musi is shaping up to be another Kaleshwaram-style ATM.”
“Traffic from AICC Delhi to Hyderabad has increased and it’s clear your government is not even able to manage the congestion,” Sanjay added.
Harish Rao accused the chief minister of misleading the people. He posted: “It’s shameful that the chief minister is not only misleading Telangana but also the entire country. Is it not true that the previous BRS regime had notified, conducted examinations and even had certificate verification done for almost all the 50,000 jobs claimed by you?”He also accused the Congress regime of discontinuing the schemes of the previous BRS government.
“Congress pledged to fulfil all promises within 100 days. Even after 300 days, they have failed to fulfil them. The story of the Congress in Telangana so far is of unfulfilled promises. Yet, Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge and the Telangana Congress are trying to portray this failed record as a success to mislead other states during elections.”