The Opposition BRS in Telangana is questioning the Congress's double standards related to the dealings with the Adani Group even though it previously had associations with the same conglomerate while it was in power in the state.
Published Oct 25, 2024 | 2:26 PM ⚊ Updated Oct 25, 2024 | 2:26 PM
In Telangana the Congress and BRS trade barbs about the Adani Group often
Ever since Hindenburg Research alleged irregularities and illegal dealings by the Adani Group, the Congress has been demanding Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) probes against it on various counts.
Leader of Opposition (LoP) in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi has been a vocal critic of the conglomerate and its Chairman Gautam Adani and has questioned its link with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP on several occasions.
However, Telangana, a state governed by the Congress, is extending open arms to the Adani Group seeking its investments and accepting its donations by organising meetings with Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy.
The Opposition BRS in Telangana is utilising this opportunity to question the national party’s double standards even though it previously had associations with the Adani Group while it was in power in the state.
On 23 October, the Telangana Pollution Control Board held a public hearing in Ramannapet of the Yadadri-Bhongir district to hear the opposition to the proposed cement plant in Ramannapet and Kommayigudem.
This provided a platform for the BRS to criticise the Congress regime and allege dealings with the Adani Group. However, going back to 2014, there is more to the Adani-Telangana relationship than meets the eye.
Currently, Congress and the Adani Group are facing criticism from the people of the Yadadri-Bhongir district for the proposed cement plant in the area. Led by the BRS, the locals expressed their fears regarding the environmental impact of such a cement plant.
Conveying the same concerns at a public hearing by the Telangana Pollution Control Board, they presented resolutions adopted in neighbouring Gram Sabhas.
This is not the first time that the Congress has drawn criticism due to the Adani Group in Telangana. Ever since it took over the state’s governance, in December 2023, the Congress has had an on-and-off relationship with the Adani group.
The differing attitudes became ammunition for the BRS, who traded barbs with the incumbent party over Adani time and again.
In fact, in 2020, BRS Working President KT Rama Rao (KTR) alleged that Adani was a proxy of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
“The double engine government the BJP talks about is this: Modi as the political engine and Adani as the economic engine,” he had said.
The same sentiment was echoed by BRS President and former chief minister K Chandrashekar Rao alias KCR who alleged that the NDA regime siphoned funds from the LIC to the Adani Group.
In August 2014, Telangana’s first chief minister KCR met Gautham Adani and the head of Coca-Cola India at his office after taking charge. Considering the power needs of nascent Telangana, he invited the Adani Group to set up power plants in the state.
In 2018, the then-home minister Mahmood Ali inaugurated the Adani Groups initiative with Israel-based Elbit Systems, India’s first private-sector producers of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs). He also inaugurated the Adani Aerospace Park in Pahadi Shareef on the outskirts of Hyderabad.
In 2020, the Adani Group, along with Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL), was awarded the project to complete a five-megawatt (MW) solar power plant by the Singareni Collieries Company Ltd, a state-owned company.
Additionally, in 2021, the Adani Group purchased solar power plants producing 50 MW in Telangana from Canadian firm SkyPower. Notably, the power plant was in a long-term power purchase agreement with Telangana’s Southern Power Distribution Company (TGSPDCL). In 2021, the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI), also awarded the Adani Group a ₹1,039 crore highway expansion project between Kodad and Khammam.
The Adani Group was present in Telangana between 2014 and 2023 through state government, Union government or private projects. However, the name is making constant headlines in Telangana after its association with the Congress regime.
Even in October 2023, the Adani Group obtained responsibility for the Warora-Kurnool Transmission line. Meant to import power into the Southern region, it spanned Maharastra, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. As part of this project, regulated by the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission, the conglomerate owns and operates a sub-station in Warangal.
Despite the Adani Group’s presence in technology, infrastructure, and energy sectors, it wasn’t met with much criticism during the erstwhile BRS regime.
The BRS seems to be repeating a similar rhetoric to what it did with the Damgundem Very Low Frequency (VLF) naval project, wherein it criticised Congress for a project it approved.
The treatment of Adani in the Parliament is a muse unlike any other. While the NDA refrains from talking about it, the Opposition often has field days sloganeering, alleging a BJP-Adani nexus.
Rahul Gandhi has flashed images of Modi and Adani countless times, demanding, like the rest of the Congress a JPC probe into Hindenburg’s allegations of an Adani scam.
Even in Telangana, in March 2023, the Telangana Congress called for a ‘Chalo Raj Bhavan’ protest to demand a probe. However, the police quelled this protest, taking numerous Congress leaders like current Deputy Chief Minister Bhatti Vikramarka, and Minister Seethakka into custody.
However, there is a stark contrast between what Congress professes at the Union government and practices in Telangana. In January this year, less than a month after the victory in the Assembly polls, the Congress government in Telangana signed an MoU with the Adani Group, drawing about ₹12,500 crore in investments.
Additionally, in the same month, Revanth Reddy signed an MoU with the Adani Group for power bill collection in Hyderabad’s Old City.
Subsequently, on 22 August, joining the Telangana Congress at a protest in Hyderabad, he demanded a JPC inquiry into the alleged Adani scam and the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) chief’s involvement in it.
At the protest, he went as far as to say: “Adani-Pradhani are looting the nation.” However, on 19 October, the Adani Group made a ₹100 crore donation to Telangana’s upcoming Skill University at Mucherla.
As Congress’ differences at the state and national levels become apparent, there is radio silence regarding the Adani Group’s presence in Telangana from Delhi’s Akbar Road and Hyderabad’s Gandhi Bhavan.
(Edited by Muhammed Fazil)
