Civic poll campaign shifts to top gear in TG

HYDERABAD

With less than a week left for the municipal elections in the State, campaigning by all the major political parties shifted to top gear, with Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy participating in his first meeting in Miryalaguda of Nalgonda district on Wednesday.

Not to lag behind, BJP national president Nitin Nabin made his maiden foray into the State. He was accorded a rousing welcome at the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport after which he proceeded to Mahaabubnagar to participate in ‘Vijay Sankalp Sammelan’ at the MVS degree college grounds.

The BRS leadership led by former Minister T. Harish Rao launched its campaign at the Narsapur municipality in Medak district.

Elsewhere, the Congress in-charge Ministers travelled to the allotted districts to mop up support for the party candidates. It was a no holds barred verbal attack by these leaders at their election rallies.

Mr. Revanth Reddy chose to single out BRS leadership for its attack by appealing to the people to teach a fitting lesson to the main Opposition, which had ruled the state for a decade. He urged the voters to give a big mandate to the Congress to win all the 116 municipalities and seven corporations.

He did not spare the BRS leadership for equating former CM K. Chandrasekhar Rao as the father of Telangana. “How can the BRS leader be christened as the father of Telangana who looted the state, amassed the assets and bought swanky cars. KCR might be the father of their own community and not for Telangana,” Mr. Reddy remarked.

The BJP national president flanked by party’s Telangana chief N. Ramachander Rao and Union Minister G. Kishan Reddy minced no words in alleging that a ‘Commissions Government’ is operating in Telangana, claiming that an ‘RR Tax’ – Revanth and Rahul” has to be paid for any work to be carried out or bills to be cleared. He further accused the land mafia of dominating governance in the State.

Mr. Harish Rao in his campaign targetted the BJP leadership stating that the NDA Government at Centre had shown empty hands to the State in union budget and questioned how the party could seek votes in the municipal elections.

Meanwhile, there seems to be no end to the rebel trouble with many aspiring leaders refusing to withdraw their nominations. The problem was more severe in the Congress, which was facing a tough time in pacifying the rebels. Notwithstanding this, the Chief Minister was confident of performing well in the polls.

Sources however, said the party was on a weak ground in some of the municipalities bordering Maharastra and Karnataka, where the BJP was hopeful of making inroads. In other districts, the fight appears to be between Congress and the BRS.