BRS working president K T Rama Rao on Friday lashed out at Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy for the decision to boycott NITI Aayog meeting over alleged discrimination towards the state in the Union Budget.

Rao pointed out that the Congress had criticised former chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao over his decision to skip NITI Aayog’s meetings during his own tenure.

Telangana decided to join the other states like Tamil Nadu and boycott the meeting of Niti Aayog on 27 July after none of its proposals were included in the Budget and promises made in the AP Reorganisation Act remained unfulfilled.

However, Reddy’s decision to boycott the meeting prompted the BRS leaders to recall the national party’s criticism when KCR as chief minister had decided to skip the meetings of NITI Aayog. KT Rama Rao today wrote on social media platform ‘X’ and took a dig at Reddy.

“When (as) chief minister KCR was boycotting meetings with the Prime Minister for rightful issues concerning Telangana’s pride, Congress had issues and accused us of collusion etc. Now what will Congress say when Revanth Reddy is himself boycotting the Niti Ayog meeting? Why does my younger brother not want to meet the PM and speak about Budget issues pertaining to the state?” wrote Rao.

Chief minister A Revanth Reddy had earlier referred to the Prime Minister as an “elder brother” to all the states and KT Rama Rao took a jibe at the chief minister, referring to him as the “younger brother.”

Kaleshwaram Ultimatum

Meanwhile, KT Rama Rao who was on a visit to the Kaleshwaram project issued an ultimatum to the Congress government in Telangana demanding that the government should fill up the reservoirs otherwise he would mobilise 50,000 farmers and operate the pumps themselves.

On a visit to the various reservoirs of Kaleshwaram project with BRS MLAs and MLCs Rao said the Congress were trying to score a political brownie point against KCR during whose tenure the lift irrigation project was constructed.

“By 2 August the government must switch on the pumps of Kaleshwaram and fill the reservoirs. Otherwise under the leadership of KCR we will come and turn them on,” said Rao.

He also accused the government of letting the water on Godavari go into waste by letting it flow into the sea instead of filling up the reservoirs. He added that a small issue was used to spread false propaganda about the project. Last year, the piers of Medigadda had developed cracks putting the entire project under scanner.

Apart from National Dam Safety Authority (NDSA) looking at the safety aspects, the state government has also set up a judicial commission under retired Justice Pinaki Chandra Ghosh to probe the project. “We want to salvage the project with the advice of NDSA,” said irrigation minister Uttam Kumar Reddy pointing out that a dam collapse would endanger several areas including Bhadrachalam town.