Tirupati Reddy says "we will not backtrack on our decision" prompting the BJP and BRS to question his authority.
Published Nov 14, 2024 | 10:03 AM ⚊ Updated Nov 14, 2024 | 10:03 AM
Chief Minister Revanth Reddy's brother Tirupati Reddy addressing the media after visiting Vikarabad Collector Prateek Jain.
Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy’s brother A Tirupati Reddy met Vikarabad District Collector, came out and sparked a controversy on Wednesday, 13 November.
Tirupati Reddy visited Collector Prateek Jain at his office a day after the police had rounded up about 57 residents of Lagacherla village in a reported midnight raid. As many as 16 people have been remanded in custody.
Early on Wednesday morning, the police also took into custody former Kodangal MLA Patnam Narendar Reddy.
The police action was after a section of villagers attacked the collector and other government officials, who had visited the village to convince the people to attend a public hearing on acquiring land for setting up a pharmaceutical facility.
While the collector was unharmed, Kodangal Area Development Authority Chairman Venkat Reddy was injured in the melee.
After meeting the collector, Tirupati Reddy addressed the media — and triggered the controversy.
“I wasn’t there for the past two days. Hence I’m here to enquire (about the incident),” he said. “We strongly condemn the attack,” he declared, although he did not identify others included in the pronoun, “we”.
Responding to a specific question, he said, “We will not backtrack on our decision under any circumstances. Not just pharma, there will be many other types of industries driving development in this constituency,” he announced.
He also revealed the status of the police investigation. He said that the investigation would not spare any perpetrators and seconded Inspector General V Satyanarayana’s claim that the BRS had engineered the scuffle.
Tirupati Reddy further declared that there would be zero tolerance towards anti-social elements. He stated that the perpetrators of the violence would face the law.
Following Tirupati Reddy’s statement, politicians and netizens questioned his authority.
“At the Centre, you have your Robert Vadra. Down here we have Tirupati Reddy,” Subhash Reddy, BJP spokesperson, said.
He noted that Tirupati Reddy, speaking on behalf of the government despite not being in an elected position, seemed as if he had extra-constitutional powers.
“Despite giving him the benefit of the doubt, under what authority did he announce the police’s intent and development works,” Subhash Reddy asked.
The BRS, too, did not remain silent. “Why is the chief minister shamelessly involving his brother in the state’s affairs,” BRS leader Sravan Dasoju asked. He disapproved of Tirupati Reddy’s statements, stating that private individuals have no standing in policy issues.
However, sources in Congress disagreed with such sentiments. “Besides being the chief minister’s constituency, Tirupati Reddy works in the constituency, making him credible,” they stated.
Meanwhile, the BRS alleged that the government was expediting the land acquisition for the pharma village project to award the contract to Maxbien Pharma.
Hyderabad-based Maxbien Pharma, incorporated in 2020, has Revanth Reddy’s son-in-law Satyanaranyana Reddy Goluguri on its board of directors. It has made the Opposition suspect foul play.
Congress sources refuted the charge. “Nobody can decide anything unless the chief minister announces it,” they said. The sources added that the BRS was levelling allegations to keep the issue live.
In August 2024, Revanth Reddy toured the USA and South Korea with IT Minister D Sridhar Babu to attract investments to Telangana.
During the tour, one announcement made was about an MoU signed with Swachh Bio to set up a ₹1,000-crore biofuel plant in the state.
Soon after the announcement, the BRS said Swachh Bio had no digital presence. It did not seem to exist in the United States. Second, a company, Swachh Biogreen Private Limited, was registered under Jagadeeshwar Reddy Anumula, the chief minister’s brother.
The mystery surrounding the firm drew allegations of nepotism. Revanth Reddy was accused of awarding an important deal to a family member, with no recorded experience in the field.
Similarly, the Congress faced another scandal in early November when BRS Working President KT Rama Rao accused Sujan Reddy, Revanth’s brother-in-law, of getting contracts worth thousands of crores.
He said Sujan Reddy-owned Shodha Infrastructure Ltd was awarded works worth ₹1,137 crore. The works were related to the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT 2.0) scheme.
“Unfortunately, Telangana ousted one family government only to replace it with another,” Subhash Reddy of the BJP opined. He deemed the entire fiasco a case of family politics meeting family businesses.
Sravan Dasoju also observed a ‘mafia-like’ pattern. “The chief minister is trying to insert his family everywhere. He is trying to make the state a real estate market,” he opined.
Dasoju added that the rampant land acquisition was also against the spirit of the Congress and the Constitution.
(Edited by Majnu Babu).
