TPCC head and MP N Uttam Kumar Reddy today exuded confidence about the prospects of his party in the upcoming elections for the Mahabubnagar-Rangareddy-Hyderabad and Khammam-Warangal-Nalgonda graduates' constituencies' MLC seats.
Speaking at a press conference at the Gandhi Bhavan after officially handing over the B-forms to the Congress candidates - former minister G Chinna Reddy (contesting for the Mahabubnagar-Rangareddy-Hyderabad seat) and ex-MLC Ramulu Naik (contesting for the Khammam-Warangal-Nalgonda seat), he said that the Congress has picked highly "efficient, able and committed leaders" as its candidates for the two posts.
"Chinna Reddy holds a PhD in Agriculture and is known for his honesty and simplicity. He has been serving the people of the state selflessly without harbouring any expectations for doing so. Similarly, Ramulu Naik was born into a poor family, and is no stranger to struggles as he has himself fought against various odds to do well in life. He had also played a key role during the Telangana movement. So, both the candidates are highly capable of serving the people, especially in addressing the needs of graduates, employees and jobless youth, which have so far remained largely unaddressed," Reddy said.
"Telangana became a reality due to the struggles of, and sacrifices made by the students. Similarly, thousands of employees risked their jobs and the futures of their children by participating in the Sakala Janula Samme for over 40 days to achieve statehood. However, neither the students nor the employees of the state benefited from its formation. Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao and his family took control of all the resources and wealth of the state, and neglected everyone else. Our candidates will remedy this," he added.
The TPCC Chief then called upon the educated youth to "unitedly defeat the corrupt and unethical regimes" of the TRS and BJP.
Criticising the CM, he alleged that the former had promised to fill one lakh vacant posts in the state's government departments, in the 2014 Assembly elections, but had not yet taken any steps to do so.
"The Pay Revision Commission (PRC), in its recent report, has disclosed that over 1.91 lakh posts are lying vacant in various government departments. The delay in the recruitment process has deprived thousands of students, who participated in the Telangana movement believing that the new state would bring better opportunities for them, from getting government jobs. This shows the negligent nature of the TRS regime," the TPCC chief said.
Reddy added that even in the 2018 Assembly elections, the TRS had promised to provide a monthly dole of Rs 3,016 to the unemployed youth of the state, but had not kept its word so far.
"The TRS lured the unemployed youth in Telangana to vote for it by promising them an unemployment allowance of Rs 3,016 every month. However, this promise has not been fulfilled even after two-and-a-half years. The CM has openly cheated the youth ever since he came to power in June, 2014," he claimed.
Addressing
the ongoing stand off between the state's government employees and the TRS regime over the issue of the recently released PRC recommendations, the Congress leader alleged that "gross injustice" was being done to the employees.
"The TRS has been unjust not only to the students of the state, but also to the government employees. The revision of their pay scales has been long overdue. But, the new PRC has been an utter disappointment with it recommendation of a fitment of 7.3%. The recommendation of such a meagre pay hike is shameful. I demand that the employees be given a fitment of not less than 43%. I also demand that the state government reject the PRC's recommendation on reducing the employees' Housing Rent Allowance (HRA). If anything, the HRA should be increased as per the existing rental values in Hyderabad and other locations in the state," he said.
Reddy then launched a scathing attack on the BJP, and said that the BJP-led union government had consistently been unjust in its treatment of Telangana since it came to power.
He alleged that Telangana had remained neglected in the Union Budgets since 2014, and that the promises which were made under the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act were yet to be fulfilled.
The TPCC head also ridiculed Telangana BJP chief Bandi Sanjay Kumar's alleged attempts to "incite communal hatred" in the state, and said, "BJP leaders often talk about the Ayodhya Ram Mandir. We are also Hindus and we are not against the construction of the temple in Ayodhya. But why are the leaders of the BJP not showing similar affection towards other temples, like the Ram Mandir of Bhadrachalam? Why is the BJP-led Centre trying to give away temple lands to private parties?" he asked.
The leader then once again urged the graduates of the Mahabubnagar-Rangareddy-Hyderabad and Khammam-Warangal-Nalgonda constituencies to reject the "unethical and corrupt politics" of both the BJP and the TRS, and to support the Congress instead.