It is not known what objectives were achieved following the briefing, what resolutions were adopted, or how the meeting benefitted Telangana.
Published Dec 24, 2025 | 2:50 PM ⚊ Updated Dec 24, 2025 | 2:50 PM
Representational image: Credit: iStock
Synopsis: The Telangana Planning Department sanctioned ₹13.59 lakh for a March 2025 MPs’ briefing at Praja Bhavan, covering luxury hotel stays, hospitality, and décor. Critics highlight the irony that the sum equals the cost of a modest house for a poor family. Amid fiscal stress and welfare demands, the spending raises concerns over priorities, austerity, and disconnect from grassroots realities.
At a time when thousands of poor families across Telangana continue to struggle for a permanent roof over their heads, a recent government order has triggered sharp questions about priorities and public spending.
The Planning Department has accorded sanction for spending ₹13.59 lakh on arrangements made for a single briefing session of Members of Parliament from Telangana, held on 8 March, 2025, at Praja Bhavan in Hyderabad.
The amount, sanctioned through G.O. Rt. No. 310 dated 22 December, 2025, was spent on what the government termed “necessary arrangements” for a briefing conducted by Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka, who also holds the Finance, Planning and Energy portfolios.
Ironically, this sum is roughly equivalent to the cost of constructing or purchasing a modest house for a poor family in a small town or semi-urban area under existing housing schemes.
The government order reveals that the expenditure covered hotel accommodation, hospitality and ancillary arrangements. A lion’s share of the amount—₹8.43 lakh—was paid to Taj Krishna, Banjara Hills. Hotel The Plaza, Begumpet, received ₹1.95 lakh, while a private firm, NM Company, was paid ₹3.06 lakh. Additional payments included ₹6,000 for florists and ₹7,200 towards miscellaneous arrangements.
The documented expenditure of ₹13.59 lakh was cleared in relaxation of quarterly regulation orders and debited to the Planning Department’s office expenses, raising eyebrows over the ease with which procedural relaxations are invoked for such events.
According to official records, the 8 March, 2025 meeting was a “briefing session” for all Members of Parliament from Telangana. The four Rajya Sabha members from the BRS and the MPs from the BJP skipped the meeting. Union Minister G Kishan Reddy, who represents Secunderabad in the Lok Sabha, said he was not able to attend the meeting because he received the invitation at the last minute and had prior commitments. All eight Congress MPs and MIM MP Asaduddin Owaisi attended the meeting.
The Deputy CM is understood to have apprised MPs about the state government’s financial position, planning priorities, energy sector issues, and ongoing or proposed projects, possibly with a view to ensuring better coordination with the Centre and strengthening the state’s case in Parliament.
The issues discussed concerned 28 development and administrative proposals/projects pending with the Centre. These included Metro Rail Phase II, Musi rejuvenation, the Future City project, and the Regional Ring Road (RRR). Apart from new projects, the Congress government also included various central schemes such as Navodaya schools.
Vikramarka urged the MPs to raise these issues in Parliament (including through Adjournment Motions, Zero Hour, Question Hour, or Rule 377) and criticised the Centre for alleged “step-motherly treatment” and unfair allocations to Telangana. Asaduddin Owaisi supported this stance, noting injustice in project sanctions despite BJP’s representation.
It is not known what concrete objectives were achieved following the briefing, what resolutions were adopted, or how the meeting translated into tangible benefits for the state.
The optics of this expenditure are hard to ignore. For ₹13.59 lakh, the government could have funded at least one complete house for a poor beneficiary, paid school fees for hundreds of students, or supported healthcare for multiple families. Instead, the money went to star hotels, hospitality, and floral décor for a closed-door briefing of elected representatives.
Critics argue that such spending reflects a disconnect between governance at the top and grassroots realities. While austerity is frequently preached to citizens, official events continue to be hosted in luxury venues at public expense.
At a time when Telangana is grappling with fiscal stress, mounting welfare commitments, and demands for housing, employment, and healthcare, expenditures like these risk being seen as symbolic of reckless splurging. The issue is not merely about ₹13.59 lakh—it is about the message such spending sends to ordinary citizens who are told, day after day, that resources are scarce.
(Edited by Amit Vasudev)
