Hyderabad: BRS working president KT Rama Rao on Thursday tore into Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy, accusing him of prioritising real estate interests over farmers and drinking water needs while Telangana struggles through a severe drought. The attack centred on the Congress government’s push for a Rs 1.5 lakh crore Musi riverfront project.

Rama Rao did not soften his language. He asked why the state was spending on beautification at a time when fields were failing, and he put the question directly to the Congress leadership in Delhi.

“Who asked for beautification when crops are drying up? Did Rahul Gandhi or Sonia Gandhi ask for it?”

Water Flowing Out, Farms Running Dry

In a full-throttle attack on the Congress government, Rama Rao said nearly 1,000 TMCft of Godavari and Krishna water had flowed out of Telangana without being adequately utilised. With 365 mandals declared drought-hit, he accused the government of failing to conserve water and aggravating the agrarian crisis.

The situation on the ground, he said, has forced farmers into expensive workarounds. Some are running generators and buying water tankers to save their crops. Others, unable to afford the mounting costs, have set their standing crops on fire.

Rama Rao also pointed to four farmer suicides reported in Adilabad over the preceding week. He accused the government of ignoring the distress that had built up in the district’s fields.

The Andhra Pradesh Comparison

Rama Rao drew a direct contrast with neighbouring Andhra Pradesh, which he said successfully diverted river water to avert drought. For Telangana, that comparison puts the water that left the state at the centre of the argument.

He accused Revanth Reddy of allowing water to flow downstream while refusing to act on suggestions from the Opposition. The reason, in his telling, was the Chief Minister’s sheer arrogance.

Promises Replaced by Holidays

Rama Rao said the Congress party’s pre-election declarations for farmers, youth, women and other sections had given way to holidays for different groups once it came to power. He said the government had failed to provide adequate support to farmers even as it struggled to ensure uninterrupted power and drinking water.

He listed the holidays one by one. “Crop holidays for farmers, power holidays for industries, PRC and retirement-benefit delays for employees, and a job holiday for unemployed youth,” he said. He ended with a warning that cut deeper than the rest: “People will eventually declare a permanent holiday for the government.”

Diverting Mallanna Sagar Water to Musi

Rama Rao questioned the proposed diversion of 10 TMCft of water from Mallanna Sagar to the Musi. He said Hyderabad was booking around 7,000 water tankers a day, while farmers faced an irrigation crisis and livestock lacked fodder.

The core of his argument was simple. He asked how the government could justify spending Rs 1.5 lakh crore on beautification when drinking and irrigation water remained scarce across the state.

Questions Over the Musi Project’s Transparency

Rama Rao alleged that the public hearing on land acquisition had been conducted without meaningful public participation. He also said the Detailed Project Report (DPR) had not been made public, despite claims of an Asian Development Bank loan backing the project.

He set the proposal against the record of the previous BRS government. That administration, he said, had completed sewage treatment plants at a cost of Rs 4,000 crore. According to Rama Rao, the entire Musi project could be completed for Rs 16,000 crore.

Detentions at the Hearing

Rama Rao condemned the detention of BRS MLAs P Sabitha Indra Reddy and D Sudheer Reddy, MLC Dasoju Sravan and party leader P Kartik Reddy. All four were attempting to attend the hearing when they were held.

He challenged Rahul Gandhi to respond to what he called the suppression of democratic participation in a Congress-ruled state. The demand put the national party leadership squarely in the middle of the fight.

Medigadda Barrage and the Cash Crunch Argument

Rama Rao accused the government of neglecting the Medigadda barrage. He said there had been no adequate inquiry into reported pillar damage in October 2023, no repairs, and no plan to resume water storage.

The government has cited a cash crunch as the reason for delays in completing the repairs and addressing pending irrigation projects. Rama Rao turned that argument back on the government, questioning how funds could be available for Musi beautification when the barrage remained unrepaired.

Demand for a White Paper Ahead of the Global Summit

Ahead of the Global Summit, Rama Rao demanded a white paper on investment agreements, the investments actually received, and the jobs created. He warned that power holidays would undermine Telangana’s investment prospects, linking the energy shortfall directly to the state’s economic pitch.

On the political front, he reacted to Minister Konda Surekha’s apology over her remarks against him. He said others who had made false allegations would also be forced to apologise.

For now, the exchange has hardened into a clear divide. On one side is a Chief Minister focused on a Rs 1.5 lakh crore riverfront vision. On the other is an Opposition leader insisting that the farmers, the dry fields and the empty tankers should come first.