KCR predicts 20 seats for Congress; Revanth sure of 80-plus

Hyderabad: With a week to go for the Assembly elections in Telangana, Chief Minister and BRS President K. Chandrasekhar Rao on Wednesday predicted that the Congress will not get more than 20 seats, while state Congress chief A. Revanth Reddy declared that if the party gets less than 80 seats, he is ready for any punishment.

KCR and Revanth Reddy made the claims while addressing election rallies in different parts of the state on Wednesday.

The main contestants have intensified the campaign for the November 30 elections to the 119-member Telangana Assembly.

In 2018, TRS (now BRS) had won 88 seats, while Congress could manage 19.

The Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) chief took the attack to Revanth Reddy’s home constituency Kodangal in Mahabubnagar district, saying that the Congress leader has no ethics, as he dubbed him as a “land grabber”.

KCR reminded people that they all watched on television how Revanth Reddy was caught offering Rs 50 lakh bribe to an MLA.

“Now whenever he is questioned, he is saying that being caught like that was a medal for him,” said the BRS chief.

“As if Kodangal is not enough, he is contesting against me from Kamareddy constituency,” said KCR, as he called on the people of Kodangal to hand over a crushing defeat to Revanth Reddy once again.

“There are 15 people in Congress who say they will become the Chief Minister. Revanth Reddy will become CM only if Congress wins. If you vote for Revanth Reddy thinking that he will become the CM, the situation in Kodangal will be back to square one,” the Chief Minister told people while claiming that many development works were undertaken in the constituency during the last five years.

Addressing another public meeting in Pargi, KCR said he is not fighting for the CM’s post. He said with the blessings of the people, he became the Chief Minister twice, but his goal is to make Telangana number one state in the country.

Stating that there were several problems when the Telangana state was formed, he said the BRS government kept addressing them one after the other. He also told people that BRS came into existence for their sake.

At Mahabubnagar, KCR recalled that he was elected to the Lok Sabha from there during the Telangana movement.

He also blamed the 55-year rule of Congress for all the problems faced by the people. Claiming that he knows the problems of farmers as he was engaged in agriculture, KCR said no government in the past did so much for the welfare of farmers.

The BRS leader said he introduced the Rythu Bandhu scheme and the government is procuring all the food grains grown by the farmers.

Meanwhile, addressing a public meeting in Nizamabad, Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) President Revanth Reddy hit back at KCR, saying he has realised that he is losing the post of Chief Minister.

“The Congress will come to power with more than 80 seats. If Congress wins less than 80 seats, I am ready for any punishment given by KCR,” he said.

The Congress leader said KCR’s family looted lakhs of crores of public money, as he alleged that KCR has a grudge against the people of Nizamabad for defeating his daughter Kavitha in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

Revanth Reddy also alleged that KCR is conspiring to snatch lands from farmers in Kamareddy and Nizamabad.

The Congress leader said KCR had promised to reopen the sugar factory in 100 days but even after 10 years, he has not fulfilled his promise.

The police booked cases against maize farmers who were demanding MSP while RTC employees were harassed though they had played a key role in the Telangana movement, he alleged.

At Narayankhed, Revanth Reddy said that nobody can compete with KCR in making people believe his false promises, adding that KCR never stepped out of his farm house to solve people’s problems.