Published Jul 05, 2026 | 5:31 PM ⚊ Updated Jul 05, 2026 | 5:31 PM
KTR said the BRS had every right to inspect the project executed during its tenure.
Synopsis: BRS Working President KT Rama Rao visited the Kannepalli pump house on Sunday, 5 July, despite police restrictions, trigger a fresh confrontation between the party and the ruling Congress over the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project. BRS leaders alleged that the government was preventing an elected Opposition leader from visiting a public infrastructure project built with taxpayers’ money.
Political tensions over the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project intensified on Sunday, 5 July after Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) Working President KT Rama Rao (KTR) visited the Kannepalli pump house despite restrictions imposed by the police, triggering a fresh confrontation between the Opposition and the Congress government.
KTR, accompanied by senior BRS leaders, legislators and party workers, proceeded to Kannepalli as part of the party’s programme to inspect the Kaleshwaram project and counter what it described as the State government’s campaign to discredit the irrigation scheme. Police had put in place elaborate security arrangements and attempted to regulate the movement of BRS leaders, citing law and order considerations.
The restrictions led to tense scenes at several points, with BRS leaders alleging that the government was preventing an elected Opposition leader from visiting a public infrastructure project built with taxpayers’ money. Party workers raised slogans against the Congress government, accusing it of using the police machinery to suppress democratic protests.
Addressing the media at the project site, KTR said the BRS had every right to inspect the project executed during its tenure and rejected allegations that the party was attempting to politicise the issue. He alleged that the Congress government was creating unnecessary obstacles to divert public attention from its own governance challenges.
The BRS leader reiterated that Kaleshwaram had transformed irrigation in large parts of Telangana by bringing water to previously drought-prone regions. He maintained that isolated structural issues should not be used to undermine the overall contribution of the project and demanded that technical assessments be carried out transparently by independent experts.
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The Congress government has consistently maintained that investigations into the Kaleshwaram project are aimed at establishing accountability for alleged financial and technical irregularities. It has cited concerns arising from the structural distress reported at the Medigadda barrage and has stated that all aspects of the project are being examined through appropriate institutional mechanisms.
Government sources defended the police arrangements, stating that the restrictions were imposed purely on administrative and security grounds to prevent any untoward incidents. They rejected allegations that the government had sought to deny democratic rights to the Opposition.
The Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project has remained one of the most politically contested issues in Telangana since the Congress assumed office. While the ruling party has repeatedly questioned the project’s execution, expenditure and engineering decisions, the BRS has defended it as one of the country’s largest and most ambitious irrigation initiatives.
Sunday’s developments are expected to further sharpen the political confrontation between the ruling Congress and the principal Opposition. The BRS has indicated that it will continue its campaign to defend the project and challenge what it terms the government’s attempts to malign its development record.
The Congress, meanwhile, has asserted that accountability for public expenditure cannot be compromised and that investigations into the project will continue in accordance with law. Political observers believe the latest confrontation is likely to keep Kaleshwaram at the centre of Telangana’s political discourse in the coming months, with both parties seeking to shape public opinion ahead of future electoral contests.
The visit concluded amid tight security, with no major law and order incidents reported.
