Telangana polls: Kishan Reddy slams Rahul Gandhi for making light of BJP's promise of backward caste CM

Hyderabad: Taking exception to Rahul Gandhi making light of BJP's announcement to make a backward caste leader the chief minister in Telangana, Union Minister G Kishan Reddy on Sunday said the Congress leader insulted the BCs with his comments.

Asked about Rahul Gandhi saying as to how BJP can make a Backward Caste leader the CM when it would only get a meagre percentage of votes, he said anything is possible if backward classes who constitute 55 per cent of the state's population get united.

Reddy, who attended a Meet the Press event at Press Club here, said Rahul Gandhi is speaking in a way of insulting the backward classes when the BJP, which is in power at the Centre and in many states, took a decision to make a leader from backward caste as chief minister if it came to power.

Recalling late N T Rama Rao's scheme of supplying rice at two rupees per kg in undivided Andhra Pradesh, Reddy, president of BJP in Telangana, said it would have been meaningless had the TDP founder been questioned about implementing the popular scheme.

On the charge against the BJP that it only made corruption allegations against BRS and BRS MLC Kavitha has not been arrested despite being questioned in the Delhi excise policy case, he said probe agencies had also questioned Congress leader Sonia Gandhi but not arrested her.

State Congress president Revanth Reddy should state whether it amounted to any tacit understanding (between the Congress and BJP), he said.

The investigating agencies take decisions as per law and the BJP does not interfere in them, he said.

On the piers of Medigadda barrage of Kaleswaram project in Telangana 'sinking', Kishan Reddy said he had written to the Jal Shakti Ministry on the matter and that a team of the National Dam Safety Authority visited the site.

It had written a letter to the state government on the matter and the dam safety authority has been set up to help with dam safety, he said.

He said the CBI would investigate the matter if either the state government seeks it or courts order it.

"If the Chief Minister orders a CBI probe on Kaleswaram, CBI officials would begin investigation within two hours," he said.

Reddy indicated that his party would release its manifesto for the November 30 Legislative Assembly polls around November 12.

The BJP has a tradition of releasing a manifesto after withdrawal of nominations in elections, he said.

The manifesto is ready and the BJP has held consultations with various groups like farmers unions, unemployed youth, women's groups, he said.

Reddy, who described CM KCR as a product of the Congress, claimed KCR would lose from both Gajwel and Kamareddy constituencies where he is contesting from in view of the public anger against him.