HYDERABAD: The unfortunate SLBC tunnel collapse has triggered a political war of words in Telangana, with top leaders from the three main parties in the state — Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy, Union Minister G Kishan Reddy and former minister T Harish Rao — exchanging accusations and challenges.
The chief minister has accused Harish of taking a vacation in Dubai on the day of the incident. He also held the “negligence” of the previous BRS regime responsible for the tunnel collapse. The chief minister said that the previous regime did not complete even a single metre of the tunnel’s construction.
Expectedly, Harish refuted the claim, stating that he had visited Dubai on February 21 to attend a function related to the wedding of BRS MLA K Prabhakar Reddy’s daughter, and returned the following day. He questioned the Congress government’s handling of the rescue operations and challenged the chief minister to an open discussion on the SLBC tunnel project.
Harish asserted that the BRS government had spent `3,000 crore to complete 11 kilometres of the tunnel and challenged Revanth to prove otherwise. He stated that if his claims were disproven, he would resign from the membership of the Legislative Assembly. Harish challenged that if the chief minister failed to substantiate his allegations, he should step down.
Meanwhile, the chief minister has also targeted Kishan, alleging that he has been obstructing key development projects in Telangana, including approvals for Metro Rail, the Musi Riverfront Development, and the Regional Ring Road (RRR).
Revanth has repeatedly made these accusations through public meetings, press conferences and open letters, drawing attention to the ongoing friction between the state and Union governments. He further claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was inclined to support Telangana but that it was Kishan who was delaying approvals by influencing Union ministers to keep project files pending.
In his counterattack, Kishan accused the Congress government in the state of failing to submit detailed project reports (DPRs) required for central approvals. He dismissed the allegations against him as an attempt to divert attention from the state government’s failure to implement its promises and six guarantees.
Adding to the political turbulence, Congress MP Chamala Kiran Reddy has called for an investigation into the death of film producer Kedar in Dubai. Kedar had previously been involved in a drug case, and the MP alleged that BRS leaders were behind his death. He also accused Harish of visiting Dubai for an exchange of black money and linked it to Kedar’s death on the same day.
These accusations and counter-accusations have heightened political tensions in the state while the public at large is wondering if there is something much more sinister at play behind the scenes.
KISHAN HINDERING DEVELOPMENT: MAHESH
Hyderabad: Accusing Union Minister G Kishan Reddy of hindering Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy from his work at every step, TPCC chief B Mahesh Kumar Goud on Monday wondered whether the BJP leader was from Telangana or not.He said that Kishan was halting the development of the state by conniving with BRS supremo K Chandrasekhar Rao.
Addressing a press conference at Gandhi Bhavan, Mahesh said that there was immense potential to develop Telangana if Kishan cooperated with the state government. Telangana can get funds for Metro Rail, Regional Ring Road, Musi rejuvenation, among other projects if Kishan cooperated with the state, the TPCC chief stated.
Charging Kishan with politicising the Mamnoor airport matter, he said that the BJP state chief brought Civil Aviation Minister Kinjarapu Rammohan Naidu to hail KCR as they were from the same caste.