BJP Seeks All-party Meet On Dist Rationalisation
Hyderabad: Telangana BJP chief N. Ramchander Rao on Tuesday demanded that Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy hold an all-party meeting and public hearing on the state government’s district, revenue division and mandal rationalization before constituting a judicial commission.
Speaking to the media at the state BJP office, Ramchander Rao accused former chief minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao of “unreasonably” rushing the earlier exercise, dividing Assembly segments into zones and undermining administrative accountability.
Ramchander Rao also opposed Revanth Reddy’s proposal to automatically deduct traffic fines from citizens’ bank accounts, terming it as “revenue grabbing” and “breach of privacy”. He argued that the state had no right to access bank accounts and called for counseling and education instead of criminal fines for drink-driving offenders. Citing a case in which a viral video of a drunk driver led to suicide, he condemned social stigma and termed the “Gaadi Pakdo aur Sarkaari account mein paisa aayega” policy as objectionable.
On inter-state water disputes, Ramchander Rao mocked the government’s hasty court petition against the Banakacharla project on Andhra Pradesh’s Krishna waters; this project was withdrawn after the Supreme Court recommended civil litigation. He blamed poor legal advice and recalled that the Vajpayee government had resolved the Cauvery issue amicably through negotiations, saying this was the BJP’s preferred approach.
Confirming that the party will contest the municipal elections on its own, Ramchander Rao dismissed the “jealousy” of the Congress and BRS over the rise of the BJP and rejected attempts to link the party with any of the rivals. He predicted a strong performance in the upcoming municipal elections, citing the BJP’s performance in major gram panchayat victories as evidence of urban growth.
The state’s BJP chief maintained that he had the support of MPs, MPs and party workers and that meetings of MPs behind closed doors were against discipline. He also announced that the BJP is supporting the Bhagyanagar Ganesh Utsav Samithi’s ‘Chalo Balapur Rally’, which it claims is aimed at protesting Rohingya and Bangladeshi infiltrators. He accused MIM leaders of supporting such groups and alleged complicity of the state government.
