Revanth invites KCR for Assembly debate on Krishna projects from January 2

Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy invited former Chief Minister and BRS president K. Chandrashekar Rao for a ‘meaningful and honest discussion’ on Krishna river projects on the floor of the Telangana Legislative Assembly.

He said the debate could be held from January 2, for both the Krishna and Godavari projects, provided Mr. Chandrashekar Rao was willing to participate.

In an informal interaction with reporters, Mr. Reddy said that issues of such importance should be debated democratically inside the Assembly rather than through statements made outside. “Let us have an honest debate in the Assembly, instead of misleading people with untruths outside,” he remarked.

The Chief Minister questioned what could be a better democratic platform than the Assembly to discuss inter-State river water issues. He said the proposed debate would be strictly based on facts, figures and agreements signed during the BRS government’s tenure concerning Krishna projects, since Mr. Chandrashekar Rao has raised these issues at a press conference on Sunday.

Assuring that Mr. Chandrashekar Rao would be treated with due respect, he said there was no question of insulting the former Chief Minister in the Assembly. “If he has any fear of being insulted, I want to make it clear that it will not happen. We want to hear how he agreed to and signed agreements that gave away Telangana’s water rights to Andhra Pradesh. Let him defend those decisions and also suggest a way forward that benefits Telangana,” he said.

The Chief Minister said he still did not view Mr. Chandrashekar Rao as an ‘active politician’, alleging that his reappearance was aimed at diverting public attention from the internal family tussle and the party’s poor performance in elections over the past two years.

‘Financial Terrorist’

Mr. Revanth Reddy made sharp remarks against the former Chief Minister, terming him a ‘financial terrorist’ and accusing him of pushing the State into deep debt. He alleged that the previous government raised loans amounting to ₹8.11 lakh crore and spent large portions of it on unproductive sectors and corruption.