TRS Govt wants to put off Panchayat Raj elections, alleges Uttam

Hyderabad : Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) president Capt. N. Uttam Kumar Reddy alleged that the TRS Government was making desperate attempts to delay the Panchayat Raj elections as it fears a humiliating defeat.

In a live interaction with Congress party workers on social media platform Facebook on Thursday, Uttam Kumar Reddy said that Chief Minister K. Chandrashekhar Rao was trying to cheat the Backward Classes en masse so as to avoid holding elections for Panchayat Raj institutions in the State. He said that the Congress party has been demanding reservation for BCs in proportionate to their population. Therefore, he said that the Congress party would continue its struggle till it gets 52% quota for BCs in Panchayat Raj polls.

Uttam Kumar Reddy said that the Congress party had nothing to do with the case filed in High Court against crossing of 50% reservation ceiling. However, he alleged that the TRS Government has been trying to put off the Panchayat Raj elections using High Court order as an excuse. Now it wants to go to Supreme Court seeking relief for an erratic PR Act which deprives BCs of their deserved share. He said that the Congress party's stand is very clear on the issue and it wants BCs to get a quota in proportionate to their population.

Stating that there were clear indications of early polls in November/December, the TPCC president asked the Congress cadre to prepare themselves for the same. He said all surveys have predicated a landslide victory for Congress part in next elections, whenever they are held. He asked them to enrol themselves in Shakti project, an initiative that connects all party workers with the top leadership including Congress president Rahul Gandhi. Any Congress worker or leader can enrol himself/herself by simply sending his/her Voter ID Number as SMS to mobile number 7996179961. Within 24 hours, the applicant will get a message acknowledging his/her registration.

Speaking about farmers, Uttam Kumar Reddy reiterated that the Congress party would waive off crop loans up to Rs. 2 lakh for each farmer in a single take within 100 days after coming to power. He said entire agriculture sector would be given a major boost through a comprehensive policy with special emphasis on farmers' welfare. He said a new crop insurance scheme would be launched wherein the State Government itself would pay the premium. He alleged that Prime Minister Narender Modi's Government at the Centre and KCR Govt in the State completely neglected the farmers. He said not a single farmer got any compensation for the damages they suffered due to natural calamities or other reasons.

Uttam Kumar Reddy said that the farmers need proper MSP, timely procurement of their produce and a reliable crop insurance scheme. He announced that the next Congress Government would ensure minimum guaranteed prices for various crops which will be in addition to the Minimum Support Prices. They include Rs. 2,000 per quintal of paddy, Rs. 6,000 for cotton, Rs. 3,500 for Soyabean, Rs. 10,000 for chilli and turmeric and Rs. 3,000 for Red Jowar.

The TPCC Chief alleged that the both PM Modi and CM KCR neglected farmers for the last four years and in the election year, they started speaking about their farmers. He said the new announcements and schemes were nothing but an eye wash and election gimmick.

Replying to a caller regarding backlog vacancies for SC/ST posts, Uttam Kumar Reddy said that the Chief Minister has been cheating Dalits and Girijans since his first day in power. He said that the vacancies that existed on June 2, 2014 have remained vacant as on today. He said a government which could not fulfil the promise of filling up 1.07 lakh vacancies cannot be expected to create new jobs for the youth.

Uttam Kumar Reddy alleged that KCR came to power due to the votes of unemployed youth. However, soon after becoming CM, he eradicated unemployment from his family by accommodating four other relatives on top posts of State Ministers and MPs. While the jobless youth are struggling hard to earn their livelihood, KCR family is living a lavish lifestyle on public money.

The TPCC president promised that the next Congress Government would fill all vacant posts besides creating lakhs of new jobs. Unlike TRS Government, which stopped giving loans to youth, he said all eligible youth would be provided with easy loans after Congress party comes to power.