Congress Challenges KTR To Debate On Telangana Power Crisis

Deputy CLP leader in the Legislative Council Mohammed Ali Shabbir on Tuesday challenged Panchayat Raj Minister K Tarakarama Rao to an open debate on the power crisis in Telangana.

Addressing a press conference at Gandhi Bhavan, Shabbir Ali strongly criticised KTR's statement wherein the latter blamed the previous Congress regime for the existing power crisis in the State.

Asking KTR to get himself acquainted with the real statistics, Shabbir Ali said that it was the Congress Government which started several power projects in the State during its rule from 2004 to 2014.

He also released a brochure giving a factsheet of the power projects launched during the Congress regime, and said that he was sending a copy of the same brochure to KTR.

He said that if the minister was not ready for an open debate, then he should convene a meeting with the energy department officials in his chambers to ascertain the facts being furnished.

Shabbir Ali said that power projects with an installed capacity of 4,365.3 MW were started during the Congress rule from 2004 to 2014.

The present production of 2,144 MW was purely due to the initiatives taken by the Congress party. Further, projects of 8,418.1 MW which were under construction too were started during Congress regime, he claimed.

"KTR is either ignorant of the facts or is deliberately overlooking the reality only to cover up the failures of the TRS Government in handling the power crisis. Despite being a US-educated person, KTR is behaving like an ignorant activist by trying to shift the blame onto the Congress Party," he said.

The former energy minister said that KTR had no moral right to criticise the Congress party for the present crisis. The mishandling of the power crisis had aggravated the agrarian crisis in the State forcing several farmers to commit suicide. Instead of consoling the farmers and taking steps to prevent them from committing suicide, the TRS Government was indulging in cheap politics, he alleged.

Shabbir Ali asked Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao to explain the status of his promises of bringing power from Chattisgarh or making other alternate arrangements.

Shabbir Ali also accused Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu of playing politics around the 800 MW Krishnapatnam power plant by not announcing its COD.

Although Unit-I of the plant had started generating 250 MW of power in June itself, Naidu was not declaring its COD, which deprived Telangana of its share of power as per the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act.

If KCR and Naidu could hug each other in Alai Balai program, why couldn't they sit and resolve the dispute in the interest of farmers, he asked.

"KCR has sufficient time to celebrate festivals and watch dance and 'dhoom dham' programs, but he is too busy to review the power crisis or visit Delhi to pressurise the Central Government seeking its intervention in resolving the power crisis," he alleged.

The Congress leader also accused KCR and KTR of using unparliamentary language against the Congress' leaders.

Referring to KTR's reported statement of asking Congress leaders to apologise by rubbing their noses on the ground, he reminded that KCR had offered to wash AICC President Sonia Gandhi's feet if she gave Telangana.

Further, KCR had offered to cut his own neck if he did not give the CM's post to a Dalit.

He said that KTR should explain why his father had not honoured his words.

Reacting to KCR's reference to Congress leaders as "dogs", he said that "dogs" symbolised faith, friendship and trust, and that his Party's leaders would stand as "dogs" to protect the interests of the farmers of Telangana.

He asked KCR to explain his own "breed" if Congress leaders were "dogs". (INN)