Hyderabad: Union Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat on Tuesday hit out at Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao for not fulfilling his promises like making a Dalit the chief minister and also over alleged corruption in the Kaleswaram project.
“The promise that KCR saab made, he had said we will have a Dalit Chief Minister in Telangana. There is about 14-15 per cent Dalit population in Telangana. About 10 per cent Adivasi population lives in Telangana. KCR saab did not find any capable person who can become the Chief Minister among that population, he said.
Rao, popularly known as KCR, himself became the Chief Minister after the formation of Telangana and now he wants to make his son the CM, Shekhawat alleged.
The people of Telangana have resolved to make a BJP leader as the state’s chief minister in 2023 Legislative Assembly elections, he said.
The Union Minister was addressing a public meeting at the temple town of Yadadri. The public meeting was organised to mark the beginning of the third phase of the ‘padayatra’ of state BJP president and MP Bandi Sanjay Kumar.
“Kaleshwaram is flawed”
Referring to the TRS government’s demand that the Kaleswaram project is accorded national project status, he claimed that the pump houses of three dams of the project are sunk under water now following recent heavy rains in view of its allegedly wrong design.
There were engineering-related shortcomings in the project and neither was it planned properly nor its investment cleared, he alleged, adding that environment clearance was also not carried out.
“They installed the Kaleswaram project in Telangana illegally, only as a cow that gives milk and as a machine that earns money,” he said.
The TRS government wants to blame the Centre now to hide its failures vis- -vis the project, he charged.
Telangana was a surplus state when it was formed in 2014 but the debt burden has mounted now, he alleged.
Third phase of Bandi Sanjay’s padhyatra
Sanjay Kumar, who will take up the ‘padayatra’ for 24 days from Tuesday, attacked the TRS government for not fulfilling his promises, including farm loan waiver for Rs one lakh, distribution of free urea to farmers, “one job in every household,” dole to unemployed youth and three acres of land to Dalits.
He demanded that the life insurance scheme to be launched by state government for handloom and power loom weavers on August 7 benefit those who died during the last one year as the scheme was reportedly announced last year.
He also criticised the TRS regime for the alleged delay in payment of salaries to the state government employees.
BJP had promised free education and free health to all eligible poor, implementation of PM Awas Yojana, Ayushman Bharat and Fasal Bima Yojana in the state during the earlier phases of his padayatra’, he said.
Shekhawat and Kumar offered prayers at the famous temple of Lord Lakshmi Narasimha at Yadadri before the public meeting.
The ‘padayatra’ would be held for 24 days covering 328 km and conclude at Warangal. Kumar will be visiting 12 Assembly constituencies in five districts during the foot march, BJP sources said.
Kumar, known for his strong Hindutva views, had launched the first phase of ‘padayatra’ last year from the Bhagya Lakshmi temple at Charminar here.
The second phase of the ‘yatra’ was held in April this year.
The BJP is making a determined bid to emerge as the alternative to ruling TRS in Telangana in the Assembly polls next year.
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