Revanth Reddy Accuses KCR of 'Looting ₹1 Lakh Crore' on Kaleshwaram Project
The Chief Minister's remarks came as a direct rebuttal to Harish Rao's narrative
Hyderabad: Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy led the attack on the BRS in the Assembly on Sunday during the debate on the Justice P.C. Ghose commission report on the Kaleshwaram project. Backed by official documents and correspondence between the previous BRS government and the Centre from 2014 to 2017, the Chief Minister could established the ruling Congress’ contention that the project was shifted from Tummidihatti to Medigadda not for irrigation benefits but to facilitate large-scale corruption, which he said amounted to looting nearly ₹1 lakh crore of public money.
Revanth Reddy accused former chief minister K. Chandrashekar Rao and former irrigation minister T. Harish Rao of deliberately escalating costs, suppressing crucial records, and ignoring expert warnings to push through a faulty design. He said the inquiry commission’s findings exposed how the project was executed to benefit contractors and political leaders rather than the people of Telangana.
The Chief Minister stressed that Maharashtra had never opposed construction of the Pranahitha-Chevalla project at Tummidihatti and had only suggested reducing the barrage height. “KCR deliberately redesigned the project with the evil intention of becoming richer than the Nizam,” Revanth Reddy charged. He further said that Chandrashekar Rao had ignored recommendations of a retired engineers’ committee, which had warned against shifting the barrage to Medigadda. These warnings, he noted, were also recorded in the commission’s report on pages 72 and 63.
Taking direct aim at Harish Rao, the Chief Minister said the former irrigation minister misled the Assembly and society by twisting facts. Citing communications from the Union water resources ministry, he pointed out that in October 2014 then Union minister Uma Bharti had confirmed the availability of 205 tmc ft of water for the Pranahita-Chevella project and cleared hydrology permissions. Yet, he said, Harish Rao sought fresh clarifications from the Centre despite approvals being in place. “Why did he write another letter when the facts were clear,” the Chief Minister asked.
Revanth Reddy said page 98 of the Justice Ghose commission report clearly highlighted Harish Rao’s role in the lapses and questioned whether BRS leaders were ready to face a CBI or CID probe. He urged the Speaker to expunge the misleading comments made by Harish Rao from the House records.
The Chief Minister accused the BRS of changing names and shifting project sites purely for personal gain, remarking that if irrigation expert Vidyasagar Rao had been alive, “he would have jumped into the Kaleshwaram waters after hearing these lies.”
Revanth Reddy said that Harish Rao himself, in parts of the report, admitted his helplessness in preventing his uncle (Chandrashekar Rao) and brother-in-law (K.T. Rama Rao) from exploiting the project. This, he claimed, was the reason behind the BRS’s attempts to obstruct debate and discredit the inquiry. He demanded that Harish Rao propose which investigating agency should take up the probe on the findings of Justice Ghose commission.
Reiterating that Telangana was born out of a fight against injustice, the Chief Minister declared that Kaleshwaram became a symbol of betrayal under BRS rule. He urged the House to not allow misinformation to undermine the findings of the Justice Ghose commission.
