KCR starving sarpanches, feeding contractors: Revanth

HYDERABAD: Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee president A Revanth Reddy, on Monday, called upon sarpanches to gherao ministers and boycott official programmes until the State government releases funds towards pending developmental works. He was addressing the media outside the Bollaram police station.

Earlier in the day, Revanth was detained by the police when he stepped out from his residence in Jubilee Hills as the Congress announced a dharna demanding the release of funds to sarpanches and gram panchayats, despite the police turning down his request to stage a protest. Almost all the Congress leaders in the city were either placed under house arrested or detained by the police. Subsequently, Congress called for the burning of effigies and rasta rokos across the state on Monday.

Responding to the protest call, a few sarpanches managed to reach the premises of Dharna Chowk. Revanth termed his detention as illegal. CLP leader Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka and former minister K Jana Reddy condemned the action.

Addressing the media, Revanth called Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao a “thief” for allegedly diverting funds from accounts of sarpanches without their knowledge. He said that due to the government’s “daylight robbery”, the gram panchayats lacked funds to give wages to sanitation workers and to pay pending bills.

“CM Chandrasekhar Rao diverted the funds meant for sarpanches through the 15th Finance Commission towards works of Rythu Vedika, gardens, drainage works, and purchase of tractors. KCR diverted these funds to pay pending bills to bada (big) contractors,” Revanth fumed.

He spoke about a sarpanch in Minister KT Rama Rao’s Sircilla constituency dying by suicide as the State hadn’t released pending bills. He further stated that Shanthamma, a sarpanch from the Suryapet district had sold her gold to pay off debts incurred due to developmental works.

‘BAIRI CONSPIRACY PK’S PLAN’
Revanth said he saw a conspiracy behind the recent blasphemous remarks on Lord Aiyyappa by Dalit leader Bairi Naresh, and the outrage that followed. He alleged that his political opponents — BRS and the BJP — had engineered it to split anti-incumbency votes. Revanth said that it was part of political strategist Prashant Kishor’s plan.

He said that the meeting in question was deliberately held in the Kodangal constituency, which he represented previously, and is likely to contest in the next election.