Telangana Congress chief dares KCR to debate on governance

Telangana Congress president B Mahesh Kumar Goud on Monday challenged BRS chief K Chandrasekhar Rao to a debate on the 10 years of BRS rule in the state versus the Congress-led government's performance in the last 15 months.

The challenge came in response to Rao's attack on the Congress government at a recent BRS rally. Goud alleged that the KCR family had "looted" public funds when the regional party was in power between 2014 and December, 2023.

"I am challenging KCR ji and BRS. We are ready for a debate at a time and venue of your choice. Let's debate what you have done for Telangana as Chief Minister for 10 years and what our Chief Minister Revanth Reddy did for the state since the last 15 months," he told reporters here.

He accused Rao of "running away" after plunging the state into a debt trap and now shifting the blame to Congress.

Referring to KCR's comments that Congress is villain number one for Telangana, the PCC president said it was the Congress which fulfilled the promise of Telangana statehood.

He highlighted that the Congress government filled about 60,000 government job vacancies in the last 15 months.

Goud charged KCR with "deceiving" people by failing to deliver on key promises, including making a Dalit as Chief Minister, double bedroom houses for poor, three acres of land for every Dalit family, increasing reservations for Adivasis and Muslims, free education from KG to PG, and tapped drinking water supply to every household.

The Kaleshwaram project built at a cost of more than Rs one lakh crore had collapsed during the BRS regime itself, he alleged.

The Congress government implemented crop loan waiver of more than Rs 21,000 crore and it is implementing schemes, including free travel for women in state-run RTC buses and LPG cylinders for poor for Rs 500.

He called the recent public meeting organised by BRS a "flop show" and criticised it over lack of participation from women.

Addressing the public meeting organised near Warangal on Sunday to celebrate the silver jubilee of BRS formation, KCR , who has been keeping a low profile since his party's defeat in the 2023 assembly elections, charged that the Congress government in the state has failed on all fronts.