Hyderabad: On a busy Tuesday, with the election campaign set to come to a close in a few hours, a jubilantly energised president of Telangana Congress and Lok Sabha MP A. Revanth Reddy summed up the election campaign, saying, four crore people of Telangana have lost nearly a decade during the two terms of the BRS government under Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao, and have decided to vote for change and bring in Indira-Amma rajyam.
With a slightly sore throat from the explosive series of speeches and slogan shouting during the campaign trail set to close, Revanth Reddy said, “the people of Telangana had huge hopes from the new state, believing it would change their lives by a huge shift in life standards, including 2BHK homes, a job for every household, development in which they would have a stake and benefit. Instead they had to live with arrogance, betrayal, corruption, dorala palana. They have made up their mind that enough is enough and have resolved to defeat the BRS in the elections on November 30.”
In an exclusive interview to Deccan Chronicle, Revanth Reddy, one of the prime contenders for the top post in he can deliver a victory for his party, replied to a plethora of questions with his characteristic candid charm, rustic brilliance, unimpeachable clarity of vision and irrepressible humour.
Q. There is an expectation of a revival of Congress from several reports on the ground but it is a strongly held view by some that the BRS cannot be defeated that easily. What is the basis of your optimism that the Congress will win this election?
A. People of Telangana have made up their mind to change the government because the BRS government is all about promises and failed delivery. In the last five years, nothing has been achieved, only failures and corruption, rising crime and arrogance, and gimmicks to create a chimera of progress. Lives of people have not changed. Actual incomes of people have stagnated and they are suffering, across all sections. The only beneficiaries are one family, the BRS ministers and MLAs, and some contractors.
In a decade, instead of fulfilling dreams of all people, a handful have cornered all development, while over 90 per cent have actually sharply slipped down the socio-economic ladder. When a coterie develops, it is loot not development – and most people in Telangana have understood this.
Q.Is your campaign essentially about allegations of failures of the BRS? Or is there also a positive message?
It is a combination of both, obviously. As an opposition party, we have shown the people the extensive damage Chief Minister K. Chandrashekhar Rao has done to the state, to the youth, to its finances. The corruption through Dharani and Kaleshwaram projects are without parallels in India. We can’t pay salaries to government employees on time and have a debt of over Rs 5.3 lakh crore, and only a decade ago, we were a budget surplus state.
Our six guarantee schemes are primarily to help people come out of the economic crisis created by the BJP and BRS governments. The financial distress of the poor, lower and mid middle-classes is very real. So who but the government must give them succor and relief.
Q. There is a section of people, especially in urban areas, who are worried about real estate, land prices, and development of Hyderabad? Can Congress match their aspirations too?
Let all of them imagine a Hyderabad without the international airport, metro rail, ring road, entire Hitec City and pharma city, and various PSUs and educational institutions going back. We will build Hyderabad into a truly global city, with balance between livelihood, environment, growth engines, balances between different sectors, and ease of living and business.
Q.BRS leaders have repeatedly said that the talk of Congress coming to power is mere hype. State is still with the ruling BRS.
Across the youth, unemployed and those who fought for Telangana, there is a call to oust the KCR-led BRS government not only because the BRS failed in exams, filing vacancies, but also as a matter of pride and self-respect. Women have understood that the Congress rule will be reminiscent of the Indira-amma Rajyam and Sonia-amma Rajyam, where the poor and weak are the first stakeholders of the government.
We are truly committed to opposing the divisive agenda of the BJP, to which the BRS and MIM are supporters of – we will also restore the kind of true democracy and liberty as befitting citizens of a modern society and progressive state like Telangana.
Q. If you had to sum it up, what are the reasons based on which you claim the Congress would win?
The biggest factors are the credibility and love for the Gandhi family. People trust Sonia Gandhi for sacrificing her political interests in enabling the creation of Telangana. Rahul and Priyanka have won the hearts of all sections of people. The second is unprecedented anti-incumbency, people are now zealous about defeating the BRS across all districts and towns and Hyderabad urban pockets. The failure to deliver, empowerment and enrichment of just one family, betrayal of promises, arrogance and corruption are all reasons for the anti-incumbency peaking.
We will replace the Dorala rajyam with Prajala rajyam and people are looking forward to it.
