Hyderabad:

Taunting the BJP over its promise to make a backward caste candidate as Chief Minister of Telangana, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday wondered how the it could do so when it was going to garner only a meagre percentage of votes.

Mr Gandhi, who addressed public meetings at Kalwakurthy, Jadcherla and Shadnagar in Telangana, said BJP leaders used to brag about their chances in the state. However, the Congress had “punctured” the four tyres of BJP’s vehicle in Telangana.

“You will get two per cent votes here and how can you make a chief minister?” he asked.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah had recently announced in a poll rally regarding making a backward class leader as Chief Minister if the BJP came to power in Telangana after the November 30 assembly polls.

Mr Gandhi further took a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying the PM would go to the US and announce that he will make an OBC candidate President of America.

“You will neither be able to make a President in America nor a Chief Minister here (Telangana),” he said.

Targetting the AIMIM, Mr Gandhi alleged that the Asaduddin Owaisi-led party fields candidates wherever the Congress fights the BJP by taking money from the saffron party.

“Wherever we go to fight the elections… Assam, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Tripura, wherever Congress party fights with BJP, MIM party takes money from BJP and puts up candidates there,” he claimed.

Just as it has “punctured the tyres of BJP” in Telangana, the Congress will do so in the whole of India.

“First, we have to win in Telangana. We will win in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Chattisgarh, and later in 2024, we will win Delhi (Lok Sabha),” he said.

He reiterated his allegation that “BJP, BRS and AIMIM are one”. “These three are working together.” “… if there is no tacit understanding between BJP and BRS, why is there not even a single case against your Chief Minister?” he asked.

He recalled that the BRS had supported the BJP in Parliament on the three farm laws.

The Congress leader promised to conduct a caste census if his party was voted to power in Telangana.

A caste census would also be conducted in the country if the Congress comes to power after the Lok Sabha elections held next year, he added.

Mr Gandhi, who alleged that the Chief Minister “swindled” Rs one lakh crore in Kaleswaram project, displayed a mock ‘Kaleswaram ATM’ made by his party to the people at Shadnagar.

Referring to reports of some ‘piers’ of Medigadda barrage of Kaleswaram project ‘sinking’, he said KCR should inspect the site.

Alleging that RSS-BJP spread hate in the country, he claimed that a ‘mohabbat ki dukan’ should be opened. He likened the 24 cases filed against him to medals given to the personnel in the Army.

“I wake up in the morning and if there is no attack on me by BJP or if they don’t speak ill of me, I don’t have fun,” he quipped.

“I have shaken them (rivals) so much that they talk about me 24-hours. Narendra Modi ji and KCR sleep in the night and suddenly they see me in their dreams,” he said.

He also highlighted the Congress’s poll promises, including Rs 2,500 for women every month under ‘Mahalakshmi’ scheme, provision of LPG cylinder for Rs 500, free bus travel for women.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

Once known for his stylish flicks and sharp catching on the cricket field, Mohammed Azharuddin has entered the electoral fray in Telangana as the Congress candidate from Jubilee Hills, saying he will bat aggressively and field properly to win on this new pitch. A swashbuckling batsman from Hyderabad, Azhar made a mark in the cricketing arena with his inimitable swagger and stylish stroke play.

Like the explosive start he had to his cricketing career with three back-to-back centuries, he also began his political innings with a win from Uttar Pradesh’s Moradabad Lok Sabha seat in 2009.

He lost from Rajasthan’s Tonk-Sawai Madhopur in 2014 and after waiting in the wings patiently he is now entering the state electoral contest for the first time by seeking to wrest the Jubilee Hills constituency in the Secunderabad Lok Sabha segment from the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS).

In an interview with PTI, the former India cricket captain said he was yearning to contest from his home state and do something for the people of Telangana after being an MP from UP and then unsuccessfully contesting the 2014 Lok Sabha polls from Tonk-Sawai Madhopur.

“I was very happy to get the ticket this time from my own state. I must thank my high command – Mallikarjun Kharge ji, Sonia Gandhi ji. Rahul ji, Priyanka ji, and most importantly our PCC chief A Revanth Reddy for giving me this opportunity. Insha Allah (god willing) we will try our best and win the election,” said Azhar, who is a veteran of 99 Test matches and 334 One Day Internationals.

The Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee working president said, “Winds of change” are blowing in Telangana in the Congress’ favour and “we will definitely prevail”.

“It is the right time, we have the right people, we are working very hard and the public also wants the Congress to come to power. Development that has happened is only in some urban areas and not elsewhere, so we will focus there and the six guarantees we have made, we will definitely abide by them and implement them,” Azhar told PTI.

Asked about him sticking with the Congress since he got the parliamentary polls ticket from Moradabad in 2009, he said loyalty is very important to him since the beginning.

“I have always felt that whenever someone gives you the opportunity one should be loyal,” the 60-year-old said.

Azhar cited the example of how he stuck with the bank that gave him a job even before he broke into the Indian team.

“When I made the three hundreds in the first three matches to set a record I had various opportunities and people were willing to give me any amount of money and jobs but one has to be loyal. When I was nothing, the bank gave me the much needed job. Similarly, the Congress gave me the opportunity and I fought two elections, so you have to be loyal because loyalty is the most important thing ” the former India cricket captain said.

“Sometimes things do not go according to how you want them to go but that means it was not meant to be because destiny also plays a very important role,” he said.

Azhar said people have seen what the BRS has done and they know that the Congress has done much more for them in the past.

All the development that happened was under Congress rule since Independence, he said.

“So, we will definitely develop Telangana, especially the areas which have been left behind,” he said.

Rich people are becoming richer and the poor, poorer so justice has to be done for them, he asserted.

“The people want change and development. Especially in the case of minorities nothing has happened and there is only talk. The backward classes, their development has also not happened,” Azhar said.

On the contest he has at hand in Jubilee Hills, the Congress leader said he has the confidence of the people of the constituency as whenever he spoke with them, he got an overwhelming response.

“People talk about it being an upscale area. But there are areas which need development. Local Congress cadre is also working very hard and we have the confidence of the people,” he said.

“I want to tell the people about the guarantees of the party and fight on those lines,” he said.

Asserting that he wanted to work for his home state, Azhar said he wanted to do something for the people of the state and is really looking forward to the campaigning.

Asked about what inspiration he would draw from cricket in his electoral battle, he said one has to be aggressive in these things and campaign aggressively.

“Once you are out on the field you have to face everything and you can’t be docile,” he said and added that he has to win the hearts of the people.

“We will do the fielding properly and win on this pitch which is very big, not just 22 yards,” Azhar said in a lighter vein.

BRS’ Gopinath Maganti is the sitting MLA from Jubilee Hills from where Azhar has been fielded.

The Congress is seeking to replace the BRS government in the state. Voting for 119 assembly seats in Telangana is set to take place on November 30 and results will be declared on December 3.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

BRS leader and Minister S. Niranjan Reddy speaking to newspersons in Hyderabad on Sunday.
| Photo Credit: By Arrangement

The election promises made by the Congress party in neighbouring Karnataka were getting fused every year since it came to power six months back and the party was asking the people of Telangana to believe it with such an experience in the backdrop, Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) leader and Minister S. Niranjan Reddy said in Hyderabad on Sunday.

Talking to reporters, he said the repeated claims of the Congress that it had given Telangana won’t suit its history, as it was conveniently forgetting the fact that it was the party that had merged the region with Andhra against the will of the people. Mr. Reddy said the Congress Government at the Centre in 2014 had given statehood to Telangana under inevitable circumstances following the sacrifices made by all sections.

He remained the Congress leader who they would insult and belittle Telangana, its people and culture repeatedly during combined Andhra Pradesh rule. After the formation of Telangana, large tracts of dry lands were provided irrigation facilities by diverting the Godavari and Krishna waters. New districts were formed and every district and Telangana had become the first State in the country to have sanctioned one Government Medical College each to every district.

The Minister stated that enviable progress was achieved in the fields of education, health, drinking water, irrigation and energy after formation of the State. People would not forget the plights they suffered during the Congress rule in the past, he noted and said BRS would win people’s hearts and the election comfortably.

The Chief Electoral Officer of Telangana, Vikas Raj explaining about the arrangements that are being made for ensuring inducement-free elections, in Hyderabad on Thursday, October 12, 2023.
| Photo Credit: NAGARA GOPAL

Chief Electoral Officer Vikas Raj has expressed dissatisfaction over the gaps in the arrangements for hassle-free conduct of the forthcoming Assembly elections.

The CEO, who took stock of the situation during a video conference, drew the attention of the returning officers and other officials concerned about the gaps that were surfacing in spite of the instructions given by the election authority. He was particular about the complaints received from the people as well as the political parties and asked the officials to convene meetings of the district grievances committees on seizures. The committees should ensure that genuine cases are resolved immediately after taking all the parameters into consideration.

There was a need to prepare foolproof reports relating to the seizures and the Acts under which they were made. Receipts should be given for every seizure and the aggrieved party should be educated about to whom their appeal should be referred.

Director General of Police stressed the need for confidence building measures and insisted that there should be visibility of the police like flag marches.

Jagtial:

Calling Rahul Gandhi a “paper tiger” and one who does not understand local politics, Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) MLC and Chief Minister KCR’s daughter K Kavitha on Saturday continued her attack against the former Congress president as the countdown begins for the Telangana Assembly polls. She also asked the Wayanad MP to reflect on his public statements after Gandhi accused the Telangana government of corruption at a poll rally earlier this week.

“Rahul Gandhi is not a ‘Babbar Sher’; he is a paper tiger. Because whatever anybody writes and gives it to him, that is the only thing he will read and go away with. He does not understand the local situation, he does not understand local politics, and he does not respect or understand the local traditions or culture of this region,” She told ANI on Saturday.

Leaders of the Congress and KCR-led BRS are engaged in a war of words, with the former attempting to return to power in the state.

“Rahul Gandhi, you are a paper tiger. Please come to Telangana, but please review what you are saying in public,” the BRS leader added.

K Kavitha further said that Telangana is a state with the highest political awareness. “Because we fought for our state, we gave our lives for our state.”

“Next time you come here, don’t just go to a ‘Dosa Bandi’ (stall) and eat dosa, but go to the mother of a martyr of Telangana; then you will know the pain, and will understand the issue of Telangana. Otherwise, you will not understand,” she asked Rahul Gandhi.

The Election Commission of India (ECI) on October 9 announced that the Telangana Assembly polls are scheduled to be held on November 30. The counting of votes will be done on December 3.

Telangana is set to witness a triangular contest between the BJP, the ruling Bharat Rashtra Samithi, and the Congress in the upcoming assembly election.

In the previous Assembly election held in 2018, BRS managed to win 88 seats out of 119 and had a dominant vote share of 47.4 per cent. Congress came in a distant second with 19 seats. Its vote share was 28.7 per cent.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Hyderabad:

Raising social security pension amounts, increasing financial assistance given under the ‘Rythu Bandhu’ investment support scheme for farmers, and providing LPG cylinders at Rs 400 each are some of the promises made by the ruling Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) for the upcoming assembly elections in Telangana.

Releasing the party manifesto for the November 30 assembly polls, BRS chief and Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao said all 93 lakh families living below the poverty line (BPL) in the state would be provided life insurance cover of Rs five lakh and that the government would bear the cost of the premium.

Mr Rao, also known as KCR, said the social security pension, which currently stands at Rs 2,016, will be increased to Rs 5,000 per month gradually over the next five years.

According to the manifesto, It will be increased to Rs 3,016 in the first year after the BRS returns to power, and then be raised incrementally up to Rs 5,000 in the next four years.

Similarly, pension for Divyang people (persons with disabilities) will be enhanced to Rs 6,016 in the coming five years, from the existing Rs 4016.

Under the ‘Rythu Bandhu’ scheme in which farmers get Rs 10,000 per annum per acre, the payments will be enhanced gradually to Rs 16,000 per annum in the next five years.

“The BRS after coming to power will give each gas cylinder at Rs 400 to ‘eligible beneficiaries’ and the remaining cost will be borne by the state government,” it said.

The BRS manifesto also promises Rs 15 lakh health insurance coverage to all eligible beneficiaries under the ‘Arogya Sri’ health scheme, increasing it from the present Rs five lakh.

Mr Rao, who expressed confidence that his party would return to power, said the promises announced by the BRS would be implemented within six to seven months after forming the government.

Before releasing the manifesto, the CM said his government implemented 90 per cent of the welfare schemes though they were not mentioned in the manifesto for the previous elections.

Speaking further about the BRS’s plans if it returns to power, he said all residential junior colleges will be converted into residential degree colleges.

Watch Live: BRS Party President, CM Sri KCR speaking after releasing the party manifesto. #KCROnceAgain#VoteForCarhttps://t.co/XRJVLM72C0

— BRS Party (@BRSparty) October 15, 2023

Highlighting the development that the state has undergone under the BRS, Mr Rao stated that Telangana has become the number one in per capita income and power consumption, among other aspects. He promised to continue the government’s policies with regard to power and agriculture and said that, if required, stimulus would be given. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Hyderabad:

Unaccounted cash to the tune of over Rs 20 crore and 31.9 kg gold was seized at various places in Telangana after the model code of conduct came into force on October 9.

A total of Rs 20.43 crore in cash, 31.979 kg gold, 350 kgs silver and 42.203 carat diamond, all worth Rs 14.65 crore besides liquor worth Rs 86.9 lakh, ganja valued at Rs 89 lakh, and other items/freebies worth Rs 22.51 lakh were seized, according to a statement issued by the office of the Chief Electoral Officer.

The state goes to the polls on November 30.

Since October 9 (when the schedule for the Telangana Assembly elections was announced) till date (morning), the total cumulative seizures is valued at Rs 37 crore, it said.

The statement further said 100 companies of the Central Armed Police Force were deployed to Telangana and they will report by October 20.

Police and other enforcement agencies have intensified their statewide enforcement efforts against illicit money, drugs, liquor, freebies and other inducements and have been carrying out checking of vehicles among other measures. 

New Delhi:

The YSR Telangana Party will contest all 119 seats in next month’s Assembly election, YS Sharmila said Thursday, putting an end to speculation her outfit will ally with the Congress to consolidate votes against the ruling Bharat Rashtra Samithi. She said she had waited four months for that deal. “Now no one can blame us for splitting the anti-KCR (Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao) vote. We tried our best,” she said, adding she will contest from Palair and maybe a second location too.

Ms Sharmila, who is also Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy’s sister, also said there were demand for her mother YS Vijayalakshmi and husband Anil Kumar to contest. “If needed they will also contest. My mother has said she will do whatever (is) needed to support me. She made that promise when I launched my party… that she will stand by me,” she said.

Telangana will vote on November 30 and results will declared on December 3.

READ | 5 States To Vote From November 7 To 30, Results On December 3

Two weeks ago she had said a “final decision” on any alliance with the Congress will be taken by end-September. “If no alliance fructifies, the party will contest all 119 constituencies,” the party said.

YS Sharmila met Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi last month, after which she claimed “constructive discussions” and warned KCR to expect defeat.

READ | Amid Speculation Of Merger With Congress, YS Sharmila Meets Sonia Gandhi

But Telangana Congress boss Revanth Reddy later told NDTV there was no question of her allying with the national party.

Reports suggested the Congress wanted the YSRTP leader to work with her brother to revive the national party in Andhra Pradesh, which will hold an Assembly election next year.

YS Sharmila ruled that out and her brother has distanced himself from her political activities.

The daughter of a former Congress chief minister, YS Rajasekhar Reddy, Ms Sharmila started the YSRTP in 2021 to bring the YSR family, or ‘Rajanna Rajyam’ to the state – in which both she and her party are electorally untested. As part of her efforts, she went on a 3,800-km state-wide march.

“All my efforts are for Telangana. I am doing everything to improve the condition of the people… so they benefit from the formation of Telangana,” she said after the Delhi trip.

Hyderabad:

Ruling BRS Working President KT Rama Rao on Monday expressed confidence that his party would score a hat-trick by winning the Legislative Assembly polls scheduled to be held on November 30. He hoped that the elections in Telangana would be “one-sided” in favour of the BRS.

“Elections are going to happen. Election is on November 30. Counting is on December 03. It seems the numbers are also in our favour this time. 30. 03. I feel KCR sir becoming Chief Minister scoring a hat-trick is also going to be certain. Things are in our favour. 3+3 is six. Our lucky number is also six. KCR sir becoming CM is certain and it seems dates are also favourable,” he said, addressing a public meeting at Parkal.

In a message posted on “X”, Rama Rao, also known as KTR said, people have blessed twice and are ready to give a victory third time.

“It would be a third-time win for KCR in the results that would be announced on December 3. It will be a new chapter in South India with an able leader being crowned,” KTR, son of Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, said in the message.

Assembly polls in Telangana will be held on November 30 and the counting of votes will be taken up on December 3.

Except for Gandhian theory, there is no place for “Godse” philosophy in Telangana, he said, hitting out indirectly at the BJP.

He further said old records will be rewritten this time by winning over 100 seats.

The Congress Party gave up the fight while the BJP left the battle even before it started, he mocked.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

The BJP on Monday took a swipe at Rahul Gandhi over a slip of the tongue that his party’s governments in Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh were on their way out, and said he had accepted defeat. Soon after the announcement of the election schedule in five states, Mr Gandhi while replying to a question on the party’s prospects said the governments in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Telangana, and Chhattisgarh were going.

“In Madhya Pradesh, their state government is going, the government is also going in Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh and also in Telangana. Sorry, I spoke wrongly. You confused me,” Mr Gandhi said and soon corrected himself.

“In Chhattisgarh, we have our government and it is coming back as also in Rajasthan. but BJP’s government in Madhya Pradesh is going. In Telangana too their (BRS) government is going and ours is coming. Seriously speaking, the atmosphere is very positive,” he said.

Posting a video clip of Mr Gandhi’s remarks on its “X” handle, the BJP wrote, “Rahul Gandhi has accepted that the Congress governments in Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh are on their way out.” Several BJP leaders also shared the video clip on their X handles.

राहुल गांधी ने स्वीकार कर लिया, राजस्थान और छत्तीसगढ़ से जा रही है कांग्रेस सरकार! pic.twitter.com/85ORupRavs

— BJP (@BJP4India) October 9, 2023

Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Telangana, and Mizoram will go to the assembly polls between November 7 and 30.

The Election Commission on Monday announced that single-phase assembly polls will be held in Madhya Pradesh on November 17, Rajasthan on November 23, Telangana on November 30, and Mizoram on November 7 while Chhattisgarh will go to the polls in two phases on November 7 (20 seats) and 17 (70 seats).