BRS Slams CM's Allegations On Krishna Water Sharing

Siddipet MLA, BRS leader and former minister Harish Rao today strongly condemned "the false propaganda" by Chief Minister Revanth Reddy regarding Telangana's share of the Krishna river waters.

He alleged that the Congress was responsible for the "betrayal" wherein Telangana got only 299 TMC of the Krishna waters while AP got 512 TMCs, and said that anyone claiming that the BRS had agreed to the 299 TMC allocation would face serious consequences.

For the unversed, the Krishna River Management Board allocated 512 TMC of water to Andhra Pradesh and 299 TMC to Telangana in 2015.

Addressing the media at Telangana Bhavan, Rao accused Reddy of misleading the public by blaming KCR, who the former said was the very person who had fought for Telangana's formation and secured water rights under Section 3.

"KCR had never accepted that sharing. If the Chief Minister can prove that the BRS agreed to the 299:512 TMC allocation, I will resign from my post. Revanth Reddy is a virus of lies that has infected Telangana, and the BRS is the vaccine to counter it," Rao said.

Citing a report dated November 18, 2013, by the Justice Sri Krishna Committee, he said that the 299:512 TMC ratio was documented and tabled in the Legislative Assembly before the bifurcation.

"Who signed the death warrant on Telangana's water rights? The 299 TMC share is a result of your inaction," Harish Rao said targeting the Congress, and added that he was prepared to release all supporting documents.

He also reminded the mediapersons that on July 14, 2014, the Telangana government had written a 22-page letter to the Centre stating that the 299 TMC share was unfair, and had demanded 581 TMC, along with the formation of a tribunal for fair distribution.

"This shows our sincerity. We never accepted the 299 TMC allocation. It is the Congress that authored this death warrant. Revanth Reddy is now misleading the public by portraying a temporary agreement as permanent," Rao said.

He accused the CM of being ignorant of technical terms, and said, "He doesn't even understand the difference between an ad hoc and a final award. The agreement signed on June 26, 2015, was temporary, as clearly stated in the letter."

"Also, if the Congress claims credit for securing 968 TMC in the Godavari, shouldn't the 299:512 allocation in the Krishna also be attributed to it?" Rao asked.

Rao also claimed that the CM's advisor, Adityanath Das, had previously acted against Telangana's interests. "You appointed someone who once dismissed Telangana's rightful claims. Are you working for Chandrababu Naidu or for Telangana?" he asked Revanth Reddy.

He urged the media to play a proactive role in safeguarding Telangana's water interests.