TRS not serious on Dalit welfare: T-Congress

The Telangana Congress leaders accused the TRS government of completely neglecting the welfare of dalits in Telangana.

Addressing a meeting at Gandhi Bhavan on the occasion of the birth anniversary of Dr B R Ambedkar on Tuesday, Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee president Uttam Kumar Reddy alleged that the state government was not giving any importance to the growth and development of the SCs in the state.

He said that the dalits had been facing humiliation and discrimination under the TRS regime. Recalling the steps taken by the previous Congress government for the welfare of the dalits, he said that the golden days would return for the dalits of Telangana after his party returned to power in the state.

Leader of the Opposition in the Telangana Legislative Council Mohammed Ali Shabbir said that Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao had openly cheated the dalits of Telangana. If KCR had honoured his words, then Dr Ambedkar's birth anniversary this year would have been celebrated under a Dalit CM, Shabbir Ali said.

He also slammed the government for not implementing the SC/ST Sub-Plan. Disclosing statistics, he said of the Rs 7,579.45 crores allotted to the SC Sub-Plan for 2014-15, only Rs 2,733.45 crores or 36.06% was spent. Similarly, of the Rs 2,799 crores allocated for SC Welfare, only Rs 1,282 crores or 45.08% was released.

Shabbir Ali said that the Chief Minister was not sincere towards any community in Telangana. For instance, he said, of the Rs 4,404 crores allotted for the ST Sub-Plan, only Rs 1,267 crores or just 28.76% was spent. Likewise, of the Rs 1,238 crores allocated for Tribal Welfare, only Rs 932 crores or 75.28% was spent.

Similarly, of the Rs 1,840 crores allocated for BC Welfare, only Rs 1,414 crores or 76.85% were released in the year 2014-15.

The Congress leader said that KCR had no respect for the BCs, which was evident from the fact that he skipped the Jyotiba Phule birth anniversary celebrations on April 11. He also slammed the TRS government for not making any representation to the National Commission for Backward Classes during its three-day visit to Hyderabad. He said that many BC castes, including 14 castes of Muslims under BC-E, deserved to be included in the Central List, but the TRS government had not made any representation in that regard.

Other Congress leaders including AICC Secretary R C Khuntia, TPCC Working President Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka, Madhu Yashki Goud, Mallu Ravi and others also addressed the meeting. (INN)