Revanth: KTR, Kishan 'Bad Bros' Block Hyd Growth

Addressing a press conference at his camp office, the Chief Minister came down heavily on BRS working president K.T. Rama Rao and Union Minister G. Kishan Reddy, calling them the “Bad Brothers” who were obstructing Hyderabad’s growth and major infrastructure projects like the Metro Rail expansion, Musi river rejuvenation and Bharat Future City.

He appealed to voters in Jubilee Hills to elect the Congress candidate to ensure the city’s rapid development continues without hurdles.

Revanth Reddy said Hyderabad witnessed real progress only during the Congress rule between 2004 and 2014, both at the state and the Centre, while the subsequent decade under the BRS in the state and the BJP at the Centre led to stagnation.

He recalled that it was the Congress which laid the foundations for Hyderabad’s international airport, Metro Rail, knowledge and IT hubs, and pharma clusters.

“It was the BRS and BJP that ensured the cancellation of the Information Technology Investment Region (ITIR), which could have taken Telangana’s economy to new heights,” he said. The city’s current growth, he added, is still driven by projects conceptualised during the Congress era.

Criticising the previous BRS government, Revanth Reddy said the Kaleshwaram project had sunk `1 lakh crore into the Godavari river without benefiting farmers, and that the new Secretariat, Police Command Control Centre and Pragathi Bhavan were constructed only to serve the interests of K. Chandrashekar Rao’s family.

“They demolished a functioning Secretariat just to suit their son’s vastu and built a new one that serves no public purpose. Did it create jobs or benefit the poor in any way?” he asked. He alleged that the Command Control Centre was used to tap phones and spy on political opponents rather than to improve civic safety.

The Chief Minister accused Kishan Reddy of failing to secure even a rupee in central financial aid when Hyderabad was flooded. “The Centre did not give a single paisa, and Kishan Reddy did not even protest,” he said, adding that the BJP and BRS governments together had burdened Telangana with `8 lakh crore debt from 2014 to 2024, despite inheriting a surplus budget state. “They looted commissions from contractors, sold the Outer Ring Road and left the state bankrupt,” he alleged.

Revanth Reddy said Hyderabad’s infrastructure remained stagnant under the BRS regime. “They could not extend the Metro by even one kilometre in ten years. They sidelined the Old City Metro plan and pushed L&T into losses. They speak of development but delivered nothing,” he said.

The Congress government, he added, is preparing a comprehensive “Telangana Rising 2047 Vision Document” to guide development over the next two decades, with `43,000 crore worth of Metro expansion proposals already submitted to the Centre. He announced that approvals had been secured for airports in Warangal and Adilabad, and that new projects were being planned for Khammam and Ramagundam. “We are also building greenfield highways and a dry port to boost trade and industry,” he noted.

Taking a dig at K.T. Rama Rao and Kishan Reddy, Revanth Reddy said, “Once, leaders like P. Janardhan Reddy and Shashidhar Reddy were called the ‘Hyderabad Brothers’ because they fought for the city’s welfare. Now, these two have become the ‘Bad Brothers’ blocking the city’s progress.”

He alleged that the leaders were deliberately stalling key projects like the Godavari drinking water supply, Regional Ring Road, rejuvenation of the Musi river, and the Future City initiative. “Why are you opposing Hyderabad’s growth? Why are you blocking Musi cleaning? Why have you surrendered to each other?” he asked.

The Chief Minister alleged that BRS leaders were targeting HYDRAA and EAGLE because HYDRAA is preventing encroachments of lakes and public lands, while EAGLE is combating the drug trade, which he claimed had flourished under the previous regime.

Revanth Reddy said that the BRS leaders and their associates had encroached on 44 of the city’s 695 lakes, including Batukamma Kunta, Sunnam Cheruvu and Nalla Cheruvu. “You polluted lakes, encroached water bodies and are now spreading misinformation against HYDRAA, which is working to protect them,” he said. He asserted that the Congress government had revived industrial investment in just one year, attracting `3 lakh crore worth of proposals, including a $1 billion investment from pharma major Eli Lilly.

Urging Jubilee Hills voters to elect Congress nominee V. Naveen Yadav, Revanth Reddy said the bypoll was crucial to ensure coordination between the state government and the constituency for the city’s continued development.

“Give the Congress one chance in Jubilee Hills, and we will take Hyderabad to international standards — free of drugs, crime and corruption,” he said. Dismissing BJP’s claims, he added, “If the BRS is defeated and the BJP loses its deposit as predicted, will Bandi Sanjay admit that Hindus are no longer with BJP?”

Responding to criticism about why a Chief Minister had to campaign for a week for a bypoll, Revanth Reddy said, “I take every election seriously. I campaigned as TPCC chief in every election, irrespective of the result. Every election is my election. On November 14, the people of Jubilee Hills will give their verdict. The BRS will be defeated, the BJP will lose its deposit, and Hyderabad’s development will move forward under the Congress.”