Karnataka Model a Total Failure, Cong Intellectually Bankrupt; KCR Messiah of Poor in Telangana: BRS

With only a week left for the Telangana assembly elections and campaigning in full swing, K Chandrashekar Rao-led Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) is focussed on highlighting the welfare schemes that his government has delivered to the people, and has sought a re-election to come back to power.

News18 spoke to BRS spokesperson Dasoju Srravan in an exclusive interview in which he said how the Karnataka model pitch of the Congress is a “total failure”. He stressed that the state government has successfully addressed the issues of unemployment and housing, and “KCR is a messiah of the poor”.

Edited interview

Q: In Telangana, people are questioning the promised 2 BHK homes by the BRS, and issues of unemployment are being raised. Why is this narrative coming up?

A: Nobody can deny that there is a crisis of unemployment in the country, and the situation is not just there in Telangana. In states like Rajasthan, Gujarat, there are lakhs of youth who are seeking employment; this includes BJP and Congress ruled states. In the context of Telangana, if you look at it, 1,65,000 jobs have been filled both in government and government undertakings. Around 45,000 job notifications have also been undertaken. In addition to these government jobs, almost 24 lakh jobs have been created in our two terms in the service and private sector. In the IT sector, the jobs have gone up by 9 lakh, and so there is a significant effort by the K Chandrashekhar Rao-led BRS government to provide jobs and ample employment opportunities to the youth.

I agree there is a gap, but it’s an all-India scenario. The ecosystem that we have created in Telangana today has the potential to create 20 lakh more jobs. The atmosphere in Telangana and Hyderabad is poised to make it become a global destination. We have Foxconn, Meta, Amazon, and this has attracted more industrial investment, and Hyderabad is the destination hub for it.

Q: You speak of job opportunities that will be provided; when will these jobs be delivered?

A: Two lakh government jobs, 6 lakh IT jobs have been delivered, another 24 lakh jobs in the private sector like IT and manufacturing have also been given. Another 20 lakh jobs in Telangana alone in our next term is our target. We have given the assurance that there will be stable career growth for the youth in Telangana when we come back to power for the third term.

Q: You promised 2 BHK homes to the people of the state. In GHMC itself, around 1 lakh was to be given to the people, but when we spoke to voters on the ground, they said they have not received the benefit and if people did get it, it is those who already have homes. How do you react?

A: I don’t think anywhere in the country there is such a transparent mechanism for the allocation of homes. Our chief minister K Chandrashekar Rao has ensured it is done through a lottery. No question of recommending a person for a 2 BHK, not even an MLA can recommend the name of a beneficiary. Such a transparent system is in place. Tell me of one state in the country where such housing has been given to the downtrodden section of society? It is a false campaign of the opposition. The construction cost is Rs 8 lakh, and around 500 sq ft of 2bhk house is given. Though the construction cost is around Rs 8 lakh, the appreciation of the land where the housing has been given today is around 50 lakh or more today. The benefit to the poor who gets these homes is very high. We cannot build homes overnight; it will be done slowly. It is an ongoing programme and a dream of KCR that every person should have a home. As a third-time CM, he will have more sustainable programmes, and as many numbers of houses will be built. KCR is a messiah of the poor, and he will ensure a vibrant future for the people of the state.

Q: Congress says the BRS has copied the welfare schemes that they have pitched for the people. Both parties are countering each other based on these welfare schemes; how is yours different?

A: It is easy to copy; Congress has become a copycat. There is no innovation by the Congress. KCR was innovative when he brought in ‘Rythu Bandhu’ and ‘Dalit Bandhu’ and KCR nutrition kit. Many schemes were effectively implemented. Unfortunately, the Congress is an intellectual party that has become intellectually bankrupt. They only know how to copy others rather than bring something new.

Q: The Congress talks about bringing the Karnataka model to Telangana?

A: What Karnataka model are you talking about? The five declarations that they made, are they able to implement those? If they are really implementing them effectively, why are farmers bringing crocodiles to the roads to protest because of the electricity substations? Farmers in Karnataka are struggling with just 5 hours of power. They are not even getting two hours of power. DK Shivakumar comes here (Telangana) and says there is five hours of power; his PCC president says the Congress will give three hours of power and in their declarations, they say seven hours of power, and in the manifesto, they say 24 hours of power? The Congress is trying to confuse the people by saying if you cannot convince the people, you must confuse them; that’s what the Congress is doing. The Congress cheated people in Rajasthan and Karnataka. But people in Telangana are smart enough and do not want to be charged like the people in Karnataka. The Congress said they will give jobs to the youth, but that has not happened. They said they will ban Bajrang Dal, have they done it? This is all ‘naarebaazi’, but it won’t work in Telangana.