How Krishna river row in Telangana has turned into a poll plank for Congress-BRS showdown

This exchange signals that a protracted battle looms between KCR and his cohorts against the ruling party regarding Krishna waters.

Harish Rao hits back

With the looming Lok Sabha elections, both parties aim to paint the other as the antagonist for Telangana.

The BRS aspires to gain an advantage by securing a substantial number of Lok Sabha seats, while the Congress seeks to stifle them, leveraging the controversy over Krishna river water sharing as their electoral strategy.

Harish Rao, BRS leader and irrigation minister during the BRS’ first tenure and finance minister during the BRS’s second tenure, refuted Revanth Reddy’s claims that his government had not surrendered the state’s control over the projects.

He said that the chief minister had tried to cover the government’s mistakes by launching a tirade against the BRS and KCR.

“It was unbecoming of a leader occupying the position of chief minister to use filthy and derogatory words against the former chief minister,” Rao said.

During a media conference, Harish Rao asserted that the state government, in a recent KRMB meeting, had indeed agreed to transfer control of the projects to the board.

To substantiate his claim, he read out meeting minutes, played a video clip of the AP engineer-in-chief briefing the media, and quoted Union Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, who informed a Telangana delegation led by BRS Lok Sabha leader Nama Nageswara Rao that the issue was settled as the state government had already consented to the transfer.

సీఎం రేవంత్ రెడ్డి అబద్ధాలకు పక్కా ఆధారాలతో సమాధానం చెప్పిన మాజీమంత్రి, ఎమ్మెల్యే హరీష్ రావు@BRSHarish pic.twitter.com/XFQbVRh5M7

— BRS TechCell (@BRSTechCell) February 5, 2024

Also Read: Harish Rao accepts Revanth challenge for Assembly debate on Krishna waters

BRS preps for LS polls

The BRS is also gearing up for a contentious Assembly session starting on 8 February. Revanth Reddy hinted at reserving his arguments for the debate on the white paper on Krishna river waters.

The state seems to be on a powder keg, with both sides engaging in sabre-rattling and muscle-flexing.

Sources indicate that BRS leaders adopted a more rigid stance against Revanth Reddy under KCR’s guidance.

In an informal meeting at his Nandi Nagar residence in Hyderabad, KCR informed party leaders of his plans to visit Telangana Bhavan on Tuesday, stated party sources.

There, he intends to interact with party workers throughout the day to formulate an action plan to confront the state government on the Krishna waters issue.

This marks KCR’s first visit to the party’s office since the recent Assembly elections and his subsequent hip replacement surgery.

The BRS patriarch is contemplating addressing a massive public gathering in Nalgonda in the second week of February, rallying people against the Congress for allegedly “mortgaging” Telangana’s interests to the KRMB.

He has allegedly instructed party leaders to elucidate the BRS government’s accomplishments during its 10-year tenure in safeguarding Telangana’s water rights.

Expressing concern over potential water shortages in southern Telangana districts, KCR urged leaders to inform the public about the status of the Krishna river irrigation projects and the risks posed by the “thoughtless” actions of the state government.

Also Read: Revanth Reddy dares KCR and Jagan over Krishna waters