The debate on Governor’s address saw considerable fireworks today in the Telangana Assembly as both the ruling Congress and Opposition BRS sparred with each other while debating on the Governor’s address.
In the absence of Leader of Opposition K Chandrasekhar Rao, it was BRS MLA KT Rama Rao who led a fiery attack on the Treasury Benches terming the Governor’s address as all “fiction and lies.”
However, Chief Minister Revanth Reddy too shot back calling Rao a “non reliable Indian” (NRI) and matched his aggression point by point.
KTR as Rao is popularly known attacked Reddy, saying he was not an elected Chief Minister but appointed by Delhi (High Command).
He said that the Congress MLAs were gloating over their victory forgetting that the difference in vote was just 1.85 per cent.
He reminded the Treasury benches that while they were 65 in number the Opposition had 54 MLAs.
The Chief Minister hit back saying, “The BRS members are unaware that in a democracy however slender it might be, the one with majority comes to power. It is the spirit of democracy that should be maintained in the House.”
Stung by KTR’s criticism that he was nominated by Delhi, Reddy hit back saying that it was the Congress which had appointed KCR a Minister in the UPA.
BRS leader T Harish Rao said the Congress came to power in 2004 only because of them (TRS) and that KCR had accepted the ministerial berth in the Union Cabinet only after Telangana was included in the Common Minimum Agenda.
With Congress criticising KCR’s tenure in the Governor’s address, KTR then attacked the Congress regime of 55 years.
Deputy Chief Minister Bhatti Vikramarka Mallu and minister Ponnam Prabhakar then intervened to say the criticism was not a fair one.
“Sensing the injustice towards Telangana, all the ministers also supported the cause and resigned to their posts. Once a separate Telangana was achieved there remains no purpose in discussing the past other than last nine and half years,” said Bhatti Vikramarka.
Responding to the criticism that the state’s finances were a mess and every department had large debts KTR also pointed out that “Investment into productive sector is not debt,” and proceeded to list out the assets created by BRS government including the Pragathi Bhavan, Secretariat, power stations, irrigation projects, roads, bridges and flyovers.
The Chief Minister said KCR had lied that the state was number one in power consumption. “During KCR’s regime the common man was not allowed inside Pragathi Bhavan. Even balladeer Gaddar had to wait for hours to enter. As soon as we formed government we removed all the barricades and allowed the people. If you see the surge of crowds at the Praja Bhavan one can understand how much they had suffered in the last ten years,” he said.
Harish Rao hit back saying that even after becoming Chief Minister Reddy was speaking like a PCC chief. The motion thanking the Governor was passed unanimously.