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KCR urges people to reject both Congress & BJP

The former chief minister said if people elect BRS candidates in all constituencies, they can have a strong opposition to question the government and get their problems solved…reports Asian Lite News

Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) president K. Chandrasekhar Rao on Saturday launched the party’s campaign for next month’s Lok Sabha elections in the state with an appeal to people to reject both the Congress and the BJP.

Addressing Praja Ashirwad sabha in Chevella constituency near Hyderabad, he said both the Congress and BJP had betrayed the people of Telangana and claimed that only BRS can safeguard people’s interests as the party was born for Telangana.

The BRS chief urged people to make a conscious decision while voting.

He said during Assembly elections, the people fell prey to the false promises of the Congress and as a result, they are facing problems in getting water for drinking and irrigation.

KCR, as Rao is popularly known, said tankers have come back while crops over 20 lakh acres have withered due to lack of water supply and the government’s failure to provide uninterrupted power.

He cautioned people that if they vote for Congress or BJP, these parties will not do anything for people as they tend to think that people voted for them despite making false promises and betraying them.

The former chief minister said if people elect BRS candidates in all constituencies, they can have a strong opposition to question the government and get their problems solved.

He asked why people should vote for Congress and BJP and appealed to them to elect BRS candidates as they alone can raise voice in the Parliament on behalf of the people.

The BRS chief said people should not remain silent but fight. He told them that if they remain silent their problems will not be solved. He said the Congress came to power by offering allurements to people.

Hitting out at the Congress over its four-month rule, he said the Congress government was not sincere in people’s welfare. KCR also lashed out at the BJP saying it did not fulfil a single commitment made to Telangana and neglected the state.

KCR said the Congress government in Telangana not only failed to deliver on the promises made in Assembly elections but also stopped implementation of the schemes launched by the previous BRS government. “The A. Revanth Reddy government has failed in providing investment support to farmers under Rythu Bandhu or protecting their crops by providing water and uninterrupted power,” he said.

Asserting that Telangana state was achieved after many struggles and indefinite fast, he said the BRS government launched many schemes to help distressed farmers. He mentioned that the government implemented Rythu Bandhu under which farmers were provided financial support of Rs 10,000 per acre every year, supplied quality power for 24 hours to farmers, implemented insurance scheme for farmers and procured the entire produce of the farmers.

KCR said the BRS government without any discrimination on the basis of caste and religion extended financial assistance of Rs 1 lakh each for the marriage of poor girls under Kalyana Lakshmi.

He said Congress promised gold in addition to financial assistance but has not implemented the promise. The BRS chief also asked what happened to the Congress promises to procure all agriculture produce, pay bonus of Rs 500 per quintal of agricultural produce. He claimed that the previous government launched Dalit Bandhu to financially empower Dalits by giving Rs 10 lakh to every family.

He said Rs 1.30 lakh Dalits were sanctioned Dalit Bandhu funds. He alleged that the Congress government stopped release of funds under the scheme. He said the Congress party promised that it would give Rs 12 lakh to Dalits but it was not even giving Rs 10 lakh.

KCR announced that if the government failed to release the funds immediately under Dalit Bandhu, he would stage a protest at Ambedkar statue along with the beneficiaries identified under the scheme. “As long as I am alive, I will continue to fight for people,” he said.

The BRS chief urged people of Chevella to reject Ranjith Reddy, who quit BRS to join Congress party. Ranjith Reddy, who was elected on BRS ticket from Chevella in 2019, recently joined the Congress, which has named him as its candidate.

BJP candidate Vishweshwar Reddy was also with BRS before joining Congress in 2018. He later quit Congress to join the BJP.

BJP alleges secret deal by Cong for Owaisi’s victory

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP K. Laxman on Friday alleged that Telangana’s ruling Congress has entered into a secret deal with the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) to ensure its victory in Hyderabad Lok Sabha constituency.

The Rajya Sabha member claimed that the Congress is trying for the victory of AIMIM President and sitting MP Asaduddin Owaisi in the next month’s elections.

He told media persons that as the elections are coming closer, “fear and insecurity is gripping the Congress”, alleging that it has failed to implement the promises made in the Assembly elections and has not yet waived farm loans, which has made the farmers angry.

He said the Congress’s attempts to link all guarantees with the Lok Sabha elections were creating doubts and that Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy was claiming a conspiracy against him to divert people’s attention and get public sympathy.

Claiming that the BJP is ahead of other parties in campaigning, he exuded confidence that it will win most Lok Sabha seats in Telangana and also come to power in the state whenever elections are held.

Laxman remarked that despite the defeat in the Assembly elections, BRS leaders are still showing arrogance. Replying to a query, he said the BJP has no plans to change the candidates in Telangana.

He said the party would soon announce its candidate for the by-election to the Secunderabad Cantonment Assembly constituency.s

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KCR’s Family Stays Away From Polls For First Time

There were speculations that KCR, as the BRS chief is popularly known, or his son K. T. Rama Rao or nephew T. Harish Rao may contest Lok Sabha elections this time…reports Asian Lite News

For the first time since floating TRS (now BRS) 23 years ago, the family of party founder K. Chandrasekhar Rao is staying away from Lok Sabha elections.

The former Chief Minister or his family member fought every Parliament and Assembly election since 2004.

There were speculations that KCR, as the BRS chief is popularly known, or his son K. T. Rama Rao or nephew T. Harish Rao may contest Lok Sabha elections this time. However, none of the three MLAs entered the fray.

KCR’s daughter K. Kavitha, who had lost the 2019 election from the Nizamabad Lok Sabha constituency is also not contesting this time. A member of the Telangana Legislative Council, she was recently arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in an alleged Delhi excise policy scam.

KCR, who had resigned from Telugu Desam Party (TDP) to float Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) to revive the Telangana movement in 2001, was elected to Lok Sabha from Karimnagar in 2004 and had become a minister in the Congress-led UPA government at the Centre. He had retained the seat in by-elections held in 2006 and 2008.

In 2009, KCR was elected to Lok Sabha from Mahabubnagar. It was during this term that he succeeded in achieving the goal of Telangana state.

After TRS formed the first government in Telangana in 2014, KCR became the chief minister. His son and nephew, who were once again elected to the Assembly, became ministers in his Cabinet. In the simultaneous Parliamentary elections, KCR’s daughter Kavitha was elected to Lok Sabha from Nizamabad.

While TRS retained power in 2018, Kavitha lost the Nizamabad Lok Sabha seat to BJP’s Dharampuri Arvind in the 2019 elections. She was later elected to the Legislative Council.

In the recent Assembly elections, Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) lost power to Congress.

With the announcement of Gaddam Srinivas Yadav’s candidature from Hyderabad Lok Sabha seat on Sunday, the BRS has declared candidates for all 17 seats going to polls on May 13.

The party has claimed that it maintained a social balance in the selection of candidates for Lok Sabha elections in Telangana.

The main opposition party stated that KCR maintained the social balance in the selection of candidates and thus gained the confidence of all sections.

A look at the list of candidates shows that BRS has given tickets to six leaders from backward castes, three from Scheduled Castes, two from Scheduled Tribes and six from other castes.

The BRS, which had bagged nine seats in 2019, retained three sitting MPs – Nama Nageswara Rao (Khammam), Maloth Kavitha (Mahabubabad) and Manne Srinivas Reddy (Mahabubnagar).

Five sitting MPs defected to Congress or BJP while one sitting MP was elected to Assembly in the recent elections.

By picking up leaders enjoying people’s support, he created an environment where they have better prospects compared to opponents, the BRS said, claiming that the announcement of the candidates created confidence.

The party also believes that after the results of recent Assembly elections, people across the state are recalling KCR’s rule and that this feeling is getting stronger.

“In this context, the party is geared up to register its victory in Parliament elections,” it said.

The party mentioned that some candidates have already started visiting the constituencies and reaching out to people. It claimed that they are receiving good support from people.

Key leaders of the party and public representatives are gearing up to undertake extensive campaigns in all constituencies to garner people’s support.

BRS Chief KCR himself will start visiting the constituencies soon to intensify the poll campaign.

BRS Pitches Gaddam Yadav Against Owaisi

The Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) on Monday announced that Gaddam Srinivas Yadav will be its candidate for the Hyderabad Lok Sabha seat in Telangana.

BRS President and former Telangana Chief Minister, KC Rao, made the announcement after consultation with party leaders from the constituency.

With this, the BRS has announced candidates for all 17 Lok Sabha seats in the state for the May 13 elections.

Srinivas Yadav was an aspirant for the BRS ticket from Goshamahal constituency in the recent Assembly elections. However, the party had fielded Nand Kishore Vyas from there.

The Hyderabad Lok Sabha constituency is a stronghold of the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM), which has been winning the seat for the last four decades.

The AIMIM was a friendly party of the BRS when the latter was in power. However, after coming to power in the state, the Congress apparently tried to mend fences with the AIMIM and its chief and Hyderabad MP, Asaduddin Owaisi also assured cooperation to the ruling party.

The BJP has already named Madhavi Latha as its candidate from Hyderabad while the Congress is yet to announce its contender.

In 2019, the BRS had won nine seats. Five of its sitting MPs recently joined the Congress and the BJP.

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Campaigning Ends in Telangana; KCR Eyes History

If K Chandrashekar Rao, widely known as KCR, wins another term in office, it will be the first occasion when a Chief Minister from a Southern state will get a third straight term in office…reports Asian Lite News

Campaigning for the high-stakes battle in Telangana ended on Tuesday with Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao seeking a third term in office on the basis of the party’s performance and promises over the past 10 years, Congress talking of momentum in its favour to form its first government in the state and the BJP also promising to end “misrule and corruption” of the ruling Bharatiya Rasthra Samithi.

The aggressive campaigning saw the Congress and BJP repeatedly raising issues concerning people, with the BRS leaders expressing confidence about the delivery of their programmes.

The three parties have made big promises in their manifestos. Polling in the state will be held on November 30 with counting of votes to take place on December 3 along with four other states.

If K Chandrashekar Rao, widely known as KCR, wins another term in office, it will be the first occasion when a Chief Minister from a Southern state will get a third straight term in office.

The Congress campaign in Telangana apparently picked up momentum after Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra and the party’s victory in assembly polls in neighbouring Karnataka.

The Congress chief in the state Anumula Revanth Reddy, 54, is seen as a leader who has taken on KCR and the party is keen to gain from the anti-incumbency against the government.

Congress leaders have been reminding residents of India’s youngest state of the role played by former party chief Sonia Gandhi in its creation in 2014.

Political analysts feel that the fortunes of BJP, which was emerging as an alternative to BRS with its victories in two by-polls and strong performance in the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation election, dipped a few months ago.

BJP leaders have been strongly attacking the KCR to fend off any perception of the party being soft towards the ruling party in Telangana. They have accused the Chief Minister of being “inaccessible” and ruling from a “farmhouse”. BJP leaders have also accused KCR of propagating dynastic politics and said that suggestions by KCR to join NDA were not accepted. BRS leaders have refuted the suggestions about their intention to join the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance.

One of the key BJP promises is to make a person from the Backward Class community a Chief Minister if the party gets support from the people of the state to form a government.

The party has also reached out to various communities and the BJP-led government last week set in motion the process of setting up a committee that will go into the issue of sub-categorisation of the Madiga community within the Scheduled Castes. It has been a long-pending demand of the community.

BJP has promised in its manifesto to implement the Uniform Civil Code and quash 4 per cent reservation for Muslims and instead increase the quota for OBCs, SCs and STs in the state.

The party said that a committee headed by a retired Supreme Court judge will investigate all “corruption cases” against the ruling BRS.

It has promised four free LPG cylinders per year to poor families, Rs 2 Lakh to every girl child from a poor family after she attains the age of 21, providing 2.5 Lakh government jobs in five years, procuring paddy at Rs 3100 per quintal, and reducing the price of petrol and diesel.

The party has said that free arrangements will be made for senior citizens keen to visit the Ram Temple in Ayodhya for the pran prathistha ceremony on January 22.

The BJP has alleged several scams in the state including that related to the Kaleshwar Dam scam and liquor poultry apart from several cases of paper leak.

It said September 17 will be celebrated every year as Hyderabad Liberation Day to mark its freedom from Nizam’s rule and August 27 will be observed as Razakar Horrors Remembrance Day.

Congress has sought to outdo the BRS in its poll promises and has announced six guarantees.

Under the Mahalakshmi scheme for women, the Congress has promised Rs 2,500 monthly financial assistance, LPG cylinders at Rs 500; and free travel for women in state-run buses.

The party has promised that Rs 15,000 per acre will be paid to farmers and Rs 12,000 will be given to tenant farmers. The party has promised a bonus of Rs 500 per quintal for paddy.

It said that families not owning a house will be provided a site for one and Rs 5 lakh for construction. Families of those killed during the Telangana Movement will be provided 250-square-yard plots.

The party said that students with Vidya Bharosa cards will receive Rs 5 lakh and Telangana International School will be opened in every manda.

The party has promised up to 200 units of free electricity to households, Rs 4,000 monthly pension will be paid to vulnerable sections.

The party will have promised that Rajiv Aarogyasri will provide health insurance up to Rs 10 lakh.

The Congress announced that it would waive crop loans up to Rs 2 lakh and promised a caste survey within six months of forming the government.

The party promised a judicial inquiry into “irregularities and corruption” in the construction of the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project

The Congress said it would name a district after former PM PV Narasimha Rao.

Among the BJP’s strong push to get the support of OBCs, the Congress has also made many promises including increasing reservations for the community

Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) leaders point out that the state’s per capita income has seen a significant rise in the last 10 years due to efforts of the government and various welfare and development schemes will continue.

The party has promised LPG cylinders at Rs 400 each, below-poverty-line (BPL) families would be enhanced health insurance coverage, social security pension would be increased to Rs 5,000 a month from Rs 2,106 and there will be an increase in disability pension.

The party said under ‘Rythu Bandhu’ scheme, under which farmers get Rs 10,000 per annum per acre, would be enhanced gradually to Rs 16,000 per annum in the next five years.

KCR is contesting from two seats – his original seat Gajwel and Kamareddy. While he is facing BJP leader Etela Rajender in Gajewal, Congress leader Revanth Reddy is taking him on in Kamareddy.

Both Etela and Revanth Reddy are also contesting from two seats.

In the 2014 assembly polls to a united Andhra Pradesh, the then-incumbent Congress got 25.20 per cent votes and BRS (then TRS) got 34 percent in the Telangana area.

Senior leaders of all parties including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah and BJP chief JP Nadda, Congress leaders Mallikurjan Kharge, Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, TRS’ KCR, KT Rama Rao and K Kavitha and AIMIM Asaduddin Owaisi ran strong campaigns in the state.

Congress accused the BJP and BRS of having a “strategic alliance” with BJP leaders accusing Congress and BRS of dynastic politics.

In 2018, BRS (then Telangana Rashtra Samithi) won 88 of the 119 seats and had 47.4 per cent of the vote share. The Congress came a distant second with just 19 seats.

While the BJP has an ambitious goal of seeing its first government in Telangana, the Congress is hoping to come to power on the basis of the “momentum” of the past few months. But the party has a huge, almost 18 per cent gap to cover in terms of voting percentage of previous assembly election. (ANI)

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KCR slams Centre over ‘politics of hate’

The chief minister said while India is praised world over for its unity in diversity, today’s absurd tendencies were tarnishing India’s image…reports Asian Lite News

Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao on Monday targeted the Narendra Modi government at the Centre saying it is pursuing politics of hate to divide people to hide its failures.

During his speech at Independence Day celebrations at the historic Golconda Fort, the chief minister alleged that those ruling at the Centre were resorting to despicable tactics to divide people.

KCR, as the chief minister is popularly known, lamented that those holding Constitutional posts were resorting to fascist attacks to destroy the peaceful co-existence which India preserved for generations.

He said this wickedness was causing pain to the freedom fighters.

He alleged that the incompetence of the Central government has impeded the country’s growth. Inflation has gone up and prices of essential commodities are sky-rocketing.

The value of the Indian rupee has dropped to its lowest and the unemployment in the country is at its peak. He said to hide these failures, the rulers at the Centre were doing politics of hate to divide people.

The chief minister said while India is praised world over for its unity in diversity, today’s absurd tendencies were tarnishing India’s image.

KCR also alleged that some divisive forces in the state were also trying to incite communal passions to destroy peace and harmony thereby creating hurdles in the path of development. He said intellectuals, youth, students and everyone need to be alert to foil the conspiracies of these forces.

The chief minister said after battling many crises, Telangana saw rapid growth and progress during the last eight years. The state is peacefully marching ahead on the path of development.

“As the chief minister it is my responsibility and Telangana government’s responsibility to ensure that without ignoring any section, we carry all sections ahead. It is the duty of every citizen of Telangana to protect Ganga Jamuni tehzeeb (confluence of Hindu Muslim culture) praised by Mahatma Gandhi,” he said.

KCR alleged that the Centre is mocking the Constitution which says India is a Union of States.

He accused the Union government of taking decisions on the subjects in the concurrent list without consulting states.

He said the Centre unilaterally introduced agriculture laws which angered the farmers and the Prime Minister himself had to apologise.

KCR said the Centre has burdened poor and middle classes by imposing GST on their basic necessities. He remarked that from milk for children to construction of graveyards, the Centre is indiscriminately imposing taxes.

He also slammed the Modi government for cutting down the share of states in the Central taxes by mobilizing revenues through the backdoor of cesses. He said this would bring down the share of the states during 2022-23 from 41 per cent to 29.6 per cent.

Not stopping at this, the Centre is acting in an autocratic manner to impose several restrictions, harming financial autonomy of states. The Centre is imposing cuts on the debts raised by the states within FRBM limits, he said.

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KCR plans to launch new national party soon 

As per sources, the name of the new political party is expected to be ‘Bharatiya Rastra Samiti’…reports Asian Lite News

Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao will be launching a national party by this month, said sources on Sunday.

The move comes as a longer stride to gather opposition leaders just ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.

As per sources, the name of the new political party is expected to be ‘Bharatiya Rastra Samiti’.

Recently KCR had met several opposition leaders.

Last month KCR held a meeting with Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav at the former’s residence in the national capital and discussed the current national issues while he met Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal to visit Mohalla clinic in the national capital.

The Telangana Chief Minister had also met JD-S leader HD Deve Gowda on May 26 and said there will be a change at the national level which cannot be stopped.

Notably, KCR’s attempts are quite visible to forge an anti-BJP alliance (third front) with all the like-minded parties excluding Congress. He embarked on an India tour where he also ventured into national-level meetings and events and gathered every brick en route his bigger aim to foray into national politics.

Attempts are also being made to seek support from all the Indians living abroad. Telangana NRIs from across the world unanimously adopted a resolution in support of Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao’s decision to foray into national politics.

Telangana NRIs coordinator B Ganesh moved a resolution seeking the support of NRIs to TRS Supremo and KCR’s move to enter into national politics in a Zoom meeting attended by NRIs from different countries. (ANI)

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‘Opposition unity’ on menu at Thackeray’s Sunday lunch with KCR

Former Prime Minister H. D. Deve Gowda has also expressed support to KCR on his anti-communal agenda and the duo are slated to have a meeting shortly…reports Asian Lite News

Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray invited his Telangana counterpart K. Chandrashekar Rao for lunch on Sunday with a power menu comprising national affairs and opposition unity, officials said.

Earlier on Wednesday, Thackeray called up KCR, as Rao is popularly known, and lauded his efforts to rally the country’s regional and Opposition parties and forge a united challenge to the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party at the Centre.

Thackeray is understood to have conveyed to KCR the need to “save the country” from BJP’s divisive political agenda for which the Shiv Sena would extend full support.

KCR is expected to fly down from Hyderabad on Sunday morning and drop in at the CM’s official residence ‘Varsha’ at Malabar Hill for the ‘lunch pe charcha’, an official indicated.

However, ruling Maha Vikas Aghadi’s (MVA) other constituents – the Nationalist Congress Party and Congress – told IANS that “as of now, no meetings are scheduled between their leaders and KCR”.

Key states like Maharashtra, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu or even Delhi – where the BJP has lost elections since the 2019 Lok Sabha polls – are considered critical in its ambitions to ensure maximum leverage for the 2024 Lok Sabha or even the future Rajya Sabha polls.

Since the past few weeks, the Telangana CM has been zipping around the country, meeting top leaders of various national and regional Opposition parties to rally them for a united front against the BJP before the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

Among the leaders he has already met are Tejaswi Yadav, his Tamil Nadu counterpart M.K. Stalin, and is likely to meet Thackeray and West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee – who incidentally had come to meet Thackeray and Nationalist Congress Party President Sharad Pawar in December.

Former Prime Minister H. D. Deve Gowda has also expressed support to KCR on his anti-communal agenda and the duo are slated to have a meeting shortly.

Most states ruled by Opposition or regional parties have been strongly protesting at the BJP’s continuing “destabilising” efforts or “toppling attempts”.

They have also been accusing the BJP of misusing power and government machinery by letting loose various Central investigating agencies against their top leaders and even family members to make them “bend” or “break”.

Among the parties that are considered the prime targets include Shiv Sena, the NCP, the Trinamool Congress, and certain other parties, too.

A MVA leader said that similar issues had come up during Banerjee’s confabulations with Thackeray and Sharad Pawar last December, and the upcoming discussions with KCR are likely to move these even further.

On Tuesday, Sena Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Raut launched a scathing attack on the state BJP functionaries, Enforcement Directorate and other central agencies, on how they have been harassing people on flimsy reasons to target the top leaders.

He also charged the Central agencies of going all out against the Opposition leaders, but not displaying the same vigour when BJP leaders are accused of graft charges despite providing evidence repeatedly.

A senior state Congress leader said while the Opposition unity plans are necessary to dare the BJP’s communal and disruptive politics, “no such exercise can be complete or practical without Congress” – a sentiment voiced even by Pawar several times in the past.

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