HYDERABAD: Telangana Minister for Roads and Buildings Komatireddy Venkat Reddy on Wednesday asked Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) President and former Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao why he was not attending Assembly sessions and wanted to know if he would resign and hand over the post of the Leader of the Opposition to someone other.
The minister also hit back at BRS Working President K.T. Rama Rao, a day after the latter criticised him during the Rythu Maha Dharma in Nalgonda. He told reporters that KTR, as the BRS leader is popularly known, has no moral right to criticise him.
"KTR faces cases like Formula-E and Dharani. I don’t have any case against me, ” said the minister. He also recalled that during the Telangana movement, he sacrificed his ministerial position for the Telangana state.
“KTR is only a MLA. He is not even the Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly. He became MLA because of his father. I don’t have to respond to his criticism, " Venkat Reddy added.
The Congress leader said he would respond to K. Chandrasekhar Rao (KCR) and not KTR as he asked why KCR was not coming to the Assembly.
"You have 30 MLAs but you are not coming to Assembly. Will you attend the next session or resign as the Leader of the Opposition to give the responsibility to KTR or Harish Rao, " asked Venkat Reddy. The minister quipped that the "BRS shop is half-closed". "The party drew a blank in Lok Sabha elections and forfeited deposit in eight out of 16 seats it contested, " he said.
Targeting Venkat Reddy during the protest programme in Nalgonda on Tuesday, KTR had challenged him to a public debate on Nalgonda’s development. The BRS leader alleged that Congress failed to address long-standing issues, such as the fluoride crisis in Nalgonda. He also criticised the Congress government for neglecting the district’s IT sector and stated that the IT Tower constructed by the previous BRS government in Nalgonda has turned into a haven for anti-social elements, including drunkards, under the current administration.
The minister hit back at KTR saying he was creating hurdles in the project aimed at the rejuvenation of the Musi River. He also slammed the BJP leaders for opposing the Musi project. "Musi River is in grave danger compared to Yamuna. The BJP has promised in its election manifesto that if it comes to power in Delhi it would clean Yamuna river but in Telangana, Central ministers Kishan Reddy and Bandi Sanjay are creating hurdles in the project to clean Musi, " the minister said.