PMO refutes KTR claim on non-invite to KCR for Muchintal statue event 

NEW DELHI/HYDERABAD:  The Minister of State in Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), Jitendra Singh on Thursday refuted the reports that Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao was asked not to attend the event in Hyderabad, which was attended by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in February. The Minister said that the claim made by Chandrasekhar Rao’s son and TRS working president KT Rama Rao was ‘patently untrue’.

“According to some media reports, the son of Telangana CM has claimed that PMO sent a message that Shri KCR should not be a part of PM’s programmes when he visited Hyderabad. This is patently untrue. No such message was sent by the PMO,” Singh tweeted on Thursday evening.

Singh said that according to Rao’s office, he was not well therefore he had not attended the programme. “In fact, the CM of Telangana was expected at the events on 5th February when PM visited Hyderabad. It was the CM’s office which informed the PMO that the CM was not feeling well and hence would not be attending (sic),” the Minister’s second tweet said.

Rama Rao, in an interview to a news channel on Wednesday, said that the CM was asked not to attend the inauguration of Statue of Equality. During his visit to Hyderabad in February, Modi unveiled the 216-foot tall Statue of Equality of Sri Ramanujacharya. 

KCR, however, was conspicuous by his absence. He was neither at the airport to receive the PM nor did he attend the unveiling ceremony, which was seen as a breach of protocol hence inviting criticism. Meanwhile, Telangana State Mineral Development Corporation (TSMDC) chairman Krishank Manne clarified that Rama Rao  was referring to the Prime Minister’s visit to Bharat Biotech and not his February visit to Hyderabad to inaugurate the Statue of Equality.

“Half Knowledge is dangerous @DrJitendraSingh saab. Minister @KTRTRS ji was referring to 28Nov 2020 when PM Modi visited both Hyderabad & Pune and wished to be photographed alone as Champion of Covid Vaccine. Hence PMO excluded both CM’s in protocol list in their respective States (sic)”, Krishank tweeted.

KTR referred to Nov, 2020 prog: TRS
As soon as the PMO put out a statement following KTR’s remarks, TRS leader Krishank Manne clarified in a tweet that Rama Rao was referring to the PM’s visit to Bharat Biotech in November, 2020. This was when the TS CM was not invited, he stated.