Telangana polls: K. Chandrasekhar Rao is an apprentice of Sonia Gandhi, says Modi

Hyderabad: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday attacked Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) supremo and caretaker chief minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao, describing him an apprentice of United Progressive Alliance (UPA) chairperson Sonia Gandhi.

Modi alleged that the Congress and TRS were in “friendly fights” in the upcoming Telangana assembly elections.

“The chief minister was a Union minister in the UPA government which was remote-controlled by madam (Sonia Gandhi). After he came into power did he destroy the state or not? His entire education was in the Congress, and those who taught him have a PhD in it,” Modi lampooned both KCR (as Rao is known) and the Congress at the BJP’s election campaign at Nizamabad on Tuesday.

Addressing back-to-back public meetings in Nizamabad and later at Mahabubnagar, Modi said the Congress divided Andhra Pradesh only to create problems between the two states. “Atalji (former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee) created Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and Uttarakhand from three states and today all six states are doing well,” he added.

The prime minister also questioned the TRS and KCR’s work undertaken since 2014, when it came into power. “Did the TRS fulfill all of your promises in the last five years? The people of Telangana wanted to make the state number one, but that did not happen. In the undivided AP, KCR had his apprenticeship under (AP chief minister Chandrababu Naidu) and later under madam (Sonia Gandhi). If you have such a guru, won’t this happen?” Modi asked the crowd rhetorically.

Mentioning Sonia Gandhi’s public meeting at Medchal near Hyderabad last week, Modi said it was funny that she called the TRS a family-run party, given that her son and present Congress president Rahul Gandhi was beside her on the stage. “Bullets were rained on the people of Telangana (during the separate statehood agitation) and not a single MLA should win from the Congress. This election is about determining the state’s future, so I request you to press the BJP symbol this time,” he said.

Modi also alleged that KCR disallowed accessible healthcare for the people of Telangana by rejecting the Ayushman Bharat scheme launched by the Centre. “He is so insecure that I would become famous which is why he rejected the scheme. Under it, 50 crore people in India have benefitted by receiving medical treatment for various ailments,” stated the prime minister.

Throughout his address, Modi attacked both the Congress and TRS equally, equating both parties in their way of functioning. “The TRS has the Congress’s habits. It has been four-and-a-half years since the state was formed, and the last government will have to be accountable for every paisa it spent and for every second that passed,” he said.

In the upcoming 7 December polls, the BJP will be contesting with a minor partner, unlike in 2014 when it had a pre-poll alliance with the Telugu Desam Party. The TDP, this time, has joined the Congress-led grand alliance, which includes the Telangana Jana Samithi and the Communist Party of India.