Ponnam Urges BJP to Deliver on Telangana Promises
Prabhakar argued that it was the right of states to receive funds and that the Centre was not doing them a favour.
Hyderabad:Transport minister Ponnam Prabhakar has demanded that the BJP fulfil the promises it made to Telangana during the Assembly and Lok Sabha elections. In an open letter addressed to Union ministers G. Kishan Reddy and Bandi Sanjay Kumar, he urged them to secure funds for pending projects related to Telangana during the parliamentary discussion on the Union Budget.
Prabhakar argued that it was the right of states to receive funds and that the Centre was not doing them a favour. He questioned why the BJP-led government was depriving Telangana of its rightful share, while pointing out that Andhra Pradesh was receiving substantial allocations in successive Union Budgets. “We are not against this. But the Centre should at least give half of the funds allocated to Telangana. Politics should not become a hurdle for development, and Telangana should not face discrimination in this way,” he wrote.
He further said it was inappropriate to ignore the just demands of the people of Telangana. “After Narendra Modi came to power, democracy is being murdered. The spirit of federalism is being damaged. The BJP government at the Centre has not given a single major project to Telangana in 12 years. The Centre is clearly discriminating against Telangana. There are two Union Ministers and eight MPs from the BJP who could have made their mark,” Prabhakar noted.
