KTR challenges Revanth Reddy to make defector MLAs resign

Setting the tone for the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) campaign ahead of the upcoming local body and municipal elections, party working president KT Rama Rao on Saturday unleashed a blistering attack on the Congress government and Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy at the mammoth Gadwal Garjana Sabha here. The event, which drew thousands of supporters and marked the launch of BRS’s grassroots mobilization drive, received an overwhelming response, electrifying the spirits of party cadres and signalling a resurgence of pink fervour in the region.

Amid chants of “Jai BRS” and waves of the party’s pink flags, Rama Rao threw down the gauntlet to Revanth Reddy, slamming the Congress for indulging in blatant politics of defections.

“If Revanth Reddy has the guts, let him make the ten MLAs who defected to the Congress resign and face by-elections. Let the people decide their fate,” he said. Referring to the controversial change of loyalties of BRS legislators to the ruling party after the assembly polls, he said the defectors had lost their identity. He slammed the defections as a “mockery of democratic values” and urged the immediate disqualification of the turncoats, echoing recent Supreme Court directives on the issue.

Highlighting the growing public discontent, the BRS leader pointed out that people were increasingly reminiscing about the “golden days” under former Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao.

“People started saying things were better under KCR,” he remarked, listing a series of unfulfilled Congress promises and betrayals. On the flagship Rythu Bandhu scheme for farmers, he said its implementation was not the same. He called the government’s other “pro-farmer” measures hollow. “They talk big, but deliver nothing,” he quipped.

Turning to the plight of daily wage earners, he raised alarms over the auto drivers’ community, claiming nearly 70 had died due to hardships



since the Congress took office. He also decried the rising joblessness among youth, accusing the government of selling off Group I jobs for Rs3 crore to Rs5 crore to cronies. He showered praise on BRS’s legacy in education, noting the establishment of 1,022 Gurukul schools across the State to empower underprivileged children.

“Children from all communities benefited from this vision. Where is Congress’s plan?” he asked, vowing to protect these institutions from any dilution.

With by-elections potentially looming in nine months, Rama Rao shifted focus to the immediate battles, the local body polls and municipal elections. “It is time to see the pink flag flutter high,” he declared, setting an ambitious target for Gadwal municipality’s 37 wards. “At least 30 wards should be won by BRS. Let’s turn this anger into votes.” Touching on local grievances, including protests against a proposed ethanol factory in Rajoli mandal, he drew parallels to similar agitations in Nirmal’s Dilawarpur, where public outcry led to the cancellation of a similar project.

“Here too, the factory should not be allowed. We stand with the people against environmental threats,” he asserted.

On irrigation, Rama Rao lambasted the Congress for stalling key projects initiated by Chandrashekhar Rao. He specifically called out the Gattu Lift Irrigation project, allocated Rs581 crore under BRS, which he said had seen “no progress” under the current regime.

“Pending projects that were converted into running projects during the BRS regime giving irrigation to over 10 lakh acres are now at risk again,” he charged, also highlighting the reverse migration triggered by BRS’s development push, noting how farm workers from Raichur in Karnataka and Kurnool in Andhra Pradesh flocked to Telangana for opportunities.

“That momentum is being reversed by Revanth Reddy’s neglect,” he said.