Hyderabad: Congress Legislative Party Leader Bhatti Vikramarka speaking on the occasion of the Telangana Formation Day, also the 78th day of his padayatra, at a press meet in Balmuru, Atchampeta constituency, gave a clarion call to journalists, intellectuals, artists and progressive people to ponder on the future of Telangana. Ponder on the sorry state of affairs in Telangana, he urged passionately. What has been achieved in these ten years of BRS after the long bitter struggle for Telangana’s statehood?
Clearly on the warpath and not mincing words, Bhatti Vikramarka said that people should shed their fears of police harassment for questioning the BRS government’s wrongdoings. Start with discussions on various platforms and work towards removing the obstacles that are hindering Telangana’s development, he exhorted. If the people of Telangana do not rise up now, they would be pushed back into the old feudal system as both capitalists and feudalists are targeting Telangana to loot its lands.
Bhatti Vikramarka jogged public memory by reminding them that it was AICC chairperson Sonia Gandhi who made the decades old struggle of people for separate Telangana State a reality. “As the Deputy Speaker, I played my part in the Assembly and introduced the State Reorganisation Bill for sending it to Delhi”. Elucidating further, he stated that though we achieved geographical Telangana, the objectives for which the state was formed- irrigation facilities, funds, recruitments , etc. were not realized. Instead people lost their self-respect and the freedom to express their views under the BRS government.
Recounting the various welfare schemes under the previous Congress government, he spoke about the Indiramma houses, the Amma Hastham scheme to distribute nine types of essential commodities through the Public Distribution System and the SC, ST Sub Plan for the development of Dalits and tribal people. The BRS government now provides only rice through the Public Distribution System. It has diverted the funds allocated under the SC ST sub plans and totally neglected the Acts. The minority department too has been rendered useless by not allocating funds to it. In effect, all the good that was done by the former Congress government for the poor and marginalized sections of society has been systematically undone by the BRS government.
Further sharpening his attack on the BRS, Bhatti Vikramarka said that though Rs.17,700 crore was allocated for Dalit Bandhu in the budget approved by the Legislature, the government did not release the funds even after the financial year was over and thereby lowered the prestige of the Legislature. In the so-called rich state of Telangana, pensions and provision of essential commodities were being cut and the construction of Indiramma houses was stopped.
While the poor were given rights over their land under several legislations by the previous governments, the BRS government introduced the Dharani Portal and effectively wiped out the rights of the poor over their land. He alleged that the Dharani Portal was the biggest land scam in the country unveiled by the BRS government.
Bhatti Vikramarka confidently asserted that the people have already decided whom to vote for in the next elections. They are getting ready to elect Congress candidates in 100 Assembly constituency seats in the next election. It was ridiculous that KTR boasted that BRS would win in 100 seats on his return from the United States of America.
TPCC Senior Vice President Mallu Ravi said that in “democratic” Telangana State, KCR’s rule was more reminiscent of the bygone monarchy. KCR demolished the Secretariat and instead rules from his home as a Jagirdar. He is spending public funds on Rythu Bandhu and Dalit Bandhu to buy votes and win elections. Now that the elections are just four months away, Rs.200 crore has been allotted to Dashabdi Utsavalu or the Decennial Celebrations commemorating the state’s “progress” under the BRS government. In other words, it’s allocation of funds for carrying out the election campaign. Mallu Ravi too was emphatic that no matter how much ever public funds were misused and conspiracies hatched, none can prevent the Congress Party’s win in the next elections.
DCC President Vamsi Krishna said that TRS leaders amassed wealth through illegal business in land, sand, wine and mining. Only KCR’s family has become the Golden Family in the State and there was no transformation of people’s lives in the state which they had achieved with great hope and aspirations. Instead of the poor being given houses, MLAs were given camp offices and the Chief Minister KCR built the palatial Pragati Bhavan for himself. Hopes of people’s lives improving if Telangana statehood was achieved are dashed to the ground as KCR’s rule had put a burden of Rs.5 lakh crore on the state exchequer.
