BRS working president K T Rama Rao
Credit: PTI Photo
Hyderabad: Opposition BRS working president K T Rama Rao on Friday targeted the leader of the opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, over the Adani bribery case. KTR dared Rahul Gandhi to instruct his party's government in Telangana to cancel the MoUs signed with the Adani Group.
He alleged Congress was playing double standards on the Gautam Adani issue. He recalled that during the 10-year regime of BRS, the then chief minister, K Chandrasekhar Rao, never allowed Gautam Adani to enter Telangana.
“As soon as a court ruling against Adani was issued in America, the Kenyan president announced the cancellation of all business relations with him. Kenya's transport, energy, electricity, and airport management contracts have also been terminated. Rahul Gandhi refers to Adani as a villain. If the Kenyan government is canceling contracts, why aren't you also terminating your agreements with Adani? You have entered into business agreements worth Rs 12,400 crore, which you expected from Adani. Rahul Gandhi should immediately call your Chief Minister and instruct him to cancel the agreements with Adani. While Rahul Gandhi criticizes Adani's friendship with the Prime Minister, why is he silent when Revanth Reddy cultivates a friendship with Adani? Rahul Gandhi claims that Adani is harmful to the country. If that is true for the nation, how can it be beneficial for Telangana? This situation raises questions about the consistency of Congress's stance on Adani and its dealings in Telangana,” KTR told reporters on Friday.
He also claimed that Adani has tried multiple times to invest in Telangana, but the BRS government did not allow him. “Adani asked us to collaborate in business. However, we politely served him tea and sent him away. We did not make any agreements with him. But Congress has followed double standards. Rahul Gandhi introduced a person accused of corruption with red carpets. That is the difference we have with Congress. When Bade Bhai (Modi) gave orders regarding Adani, Chote Bhai (Revanth) welcomed Adani with a red carpet. As soon as the Congress government was formed in Telangana, they proudly announced that they had signed agreements worth Rs 12,400 crore with Adani's companies. They started a drama regarding bill collections in the Old City to hand over DISCOMs to Adani. They conspired to hand over the DISCOMs to Adani and privatize them. Adani is working to establish an empire in Telangana with an investment of Rs 12,400 crores. Adani met with Revanth Reddy for four hours at his residence. While Adani is expanding his business in Telangana, does the Congress high command remain unaware of this? Even for small corporation positions, Congress requires high command permission. They have not yet given permission for cabinet expansion. Should we assume that there is no high command permission for agreements with Adani? Is Rahul Gandhi, who criticizes Adani daily, supporting these agreements? This needs to be clarified,” added KTR.
The BRS leader also said that Rahul Gandhi himself stated at election rallies in Maharashtra that industrialists do not give donations without expecting something in return. He mentioned that they give hoping for something significant in return. Yet, the Congress government here has taken Rs 100 crores as a donation from Adani. Did Rahul Gandhi know about this donation? Or did they accept it without his knowledge?, asked KTR.
Congress is a national party, and it should have a consistent approach across the country. However, in Delhi, Adani is not seen as a good person, while in the local context, he is viewed positively. Is the Congress party's policy one thing in the streets and another in Delhi?, KTR asked.