Harish Rao: I will not stop till Revanth Reddy steps down

Former Minister and senior BRS leader T Harish Rao strongly countered Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy’s remarks on Telangana’s debts in the Assembly. Dismissing Reddy’s claims, he challenged him to a debate on the State’s financial situation and governance, accusing the Congress government of misleading the public and using debt as an excuse to mask its failure in fulfilling electoral promises.

Revanth Reddy’s lies

Harish Rao cited figures from the Congress government’s own White Paper to refute the allegations. He pointed out that the BRS government had borrowed a total of ₹4.17 lakh crore over its tenure, including the pandemic years, averaging ₹41,000 crore annually.

In contrast, the Congress government, within just one year, had taken loans amounting to ₹1.58 lakh crore without launching any significant programs. “Are you ready for a debate in the Assembly?” he questioned, asserting that the Congress was using the debt issue to justify its unfulfilled promises.

Taking aim at Revanth Reddy’s shifting stance on policy matters, Harish Rao reminded him of his pre-election promise to make Layout Regularisation Scheme (LRS) free, after previously accusing former CM K Chandrashekhar Rao of exploiting the poor through it.

“Now, you have completely backtracked and are forcing people to pay hefty amounts. If you have integrity, make it free as promised or admit your deception,” he challenged.

Backtracking

He also criticized the Congress government for reversing its stance on Pharma City. “Before the elections, you assured people that lands would be returned. Instead, your government is now acquiring an additional 15,000 acres, doubling the earlier allocation,” he said.

Additionally, he accused Revanth Reddy of misleading farmers on the crop loan waiver and dared him to visit any Assembly constituency to verify whether the waivers had been implemented.

Modi and Revanth’s friendship

Harish Rao further alleged that Revanth Reddy was aligning with the BJP and trying to appease Prime Minister Narendra Modi by acting as a covert BJP representative within the Congress.

He highlighted the contradiction between Rahul Gandhi’s criticism of Modi—calling him “Chowkidar chor hai”—and Revanth Reddy’s praise, referring to the Prime Minister as “Bade bhai.” “Who is lying—Rahul Gandhi or Revanth Reddy?” he questioned, adding that the Congress’ recent defeat in the MLC elections was a direct rejection of Revanth Reddy’s leadership.

He also accused the Chief Minister of surrendering Telangana’s interests to the Centre while taking undue credit for the BRS government’s achievements. “Despite his claims of maintaining friendly relations with the Centre, he has yet to accomplish anything noteworthy,” Harish Rao remarked.

Only goal

Dismissing rumors of competition between him and BRS working president KT Rama Rao for the Opposition leader’s position, Harish Rao declared that their primary goal was to defeat Revanth Reddy in the next elections and reinstate Chandrashekhar Rao as Chief Minister.

“Both Rama Rao and I are disciplined party soldiers who follow our president’s directives without question,” he affirmed.