It may have been a faux pas, but the BRS has not spared former Congress chief Rahul Gandhi for his disregard of facts.
Rahul, while slamming the BRS and Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao at the Vijaya Bheri rally — organised by the Telangana Congress in Hyderabad on Sunday, 17 September, ahead of the upcoming Assembly elections in the state — claimed that the pink party had extended support to the nominee of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in the presidential election.
The BRS leaders soon began nailing him for not getting his facts straight.
Rahul was taking the BRS to task at the public meeting for purportedly working hand-in-glove with the BJP, citing several instances, including the BRS apparently supporting the NDA candidates in the presidential and vice-presidential elections, and the passage of the GST Bill.
Also read: Congress throws BRS a welfare challenge ahead of Assembly polls
Rahul accused of lying
In a sharp reaction, the BRS leaders reminded Rahul that the pink party had supported the Opposition nominee — Yashwant Sinha — in the election to the office of the President, and not the NDA candidate Droupadi Murmu.
It is possible that Rahul was referring to the BRS extending support to Ram Nath Kovind when he was fielded as the NDA candidate for the office of the President in 2017.
However, it was assumed that Rahul was referring to the recent election of Droupadi Murmu as the President of India because he did not specify a name.
BRS leader and Telangana State Renewable Energy Development Corporation Chairman Y Satish Reddy, who caught out Rahul Gandhi on his blunder, posted on X: “Rahul Gandhi falsely claims that the BRS supported the BJP’s presidential candidate. The truth is that the BRS Party outrightly supported Yashwant Sinha Ji and even welcomed him with a grand bike rally. When you are lying about something so evident, how do you expect the people of Telangana to trust your guarantees, @RahulGandhi ji?”
Rahul Gandhi falsely claims that the @BRSparty supported the BJP's presidential candidate.
The truth is that the BRS Party outrightly supported Yashwant Sinha Ji and even welcomed him with a grand bike rally.
When you are lying about something so evident, how do you expect the… pic.twitter.com/Svnaq8nh1P
— YSR (@ysathishreddy) September 18, 2023
Satish Reddy is one of the social media convenors of the BRS, and has compiled a booklet and a CD titled 100 lies of BJP, exposing the “false promises” made by the BJP leaders in Telangana.
In June 2022, when Yashwant Sinha filed his nomination papers for the presidential elections, the BRS (then the TRS) said it was backing him. He was the Opposition parties’ joint candidate.
Also read: Both Delhi, Hyd govts betrayed Golden Telangana promise: CWC
Support for Yashwant Sinha
In fact, BRS working president and Telangana IT and Industries Minister KT Rama Rao was present, along with party MPs, when Sinha filed his nomination papers.
Earlier, KTR had tweeted: “President of @trspartyonline Sri KCR Garu has decided to extend support to the candidature of Sri @YashwantSinha Ji in the election for President of India “Along with our Members of Parliament, I will be representing the TRS at the nomination today.”
The BRS, however, skipped joint meetings of the Opposition parties as it did not want to shake hands or rub shoulders with Congress leaders.
When Yashwant Singh came to Hyderabad to seek support for his election, Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao and his son KT Rama Rao received him at the Begumpet airport. The BRS took out a bike rally from the airport in his honour.
But the same BRS supported the candidature of Ram Nath Kovind in 2017 when he contested the presidential election as the NDA’s nominee.
KCR decided to support Kovind after Prime Minister Narendra Modi sought the BRS’ backing for him at the time of his election.
