KTR writes letter to Amit Shah asking queries before inauguration of laboratory in Telangana

|HT|

Union home minister Amit Shah - due in Telangana today to inaugurate a forensic laboratory and speak at a Bharatiya Janata Party event - has also been served a 'question paper' - an open letter with 27 queries - by chief minister K Chandrashekar Rao's son KT Rama Rao, or KTR. Rama Rao slammed Shah for the 'discriminatory and vindictive attitude of the union government towards our state' and demanded answers on behalf of the people of the state. "HM Amit Shah ji, Since you're visiting Telangana today, request you to clarify on the discriminatory & vindictive attitude of Union Govt towards our state…Below is the question paper… The people of Telangana are looking forward to getting enlightened with your answers," KTR tweeted. The attached info-graphic did indeed have a long list of questions.

These ranged from disputes over the setting up of education institutions and medical colleges to lack of industrial support and incentives, despite the state being a 'top investment destination'.

Also raised were promises made by late union minister Sushma Swaraj regarding the Palamuru Rangareddy lift irrigation project and the lack of financial assistance from the central government, particularly after massive floods in capital Hyderabad. "… (the centre allocated) thousands of crores to Gujarat during similar floods…" the letter pointed out.

KTR also questioned the lack of a defence industrial corridor, "Why move it to a state which has zero presence of defence factories, while Telangana houses major aerospace and defence companies?" Unemployment, failure to develop new software technology parks and 'creating hurdles in paddy produced by farmers of Telangana' were also among the 27 questions asked of Shah.

KTR wasn't the only ruling Telangana Rashtra Samiti member to target Shah.

Party MP Kalvakuntla Kavitha unleashed a long thread demanding to know when the centre would clear a list of dues to the state government. Amit Shah is due in Telangana this afternoon; he will inaugurate the National Cyber Forensic Laboratory in Hyderabad at 3 pm, and hold a public meet in Thukkuguda municipality at 6.30 p.m.

His visit comes with assembly elections in Telangana due next year. The BJP performed poorly in 2018, winning just one of 119 seats. It improved slightly in Lok Sabha polls held the following year, winning four of 17 seats.

In the 2020 Hyderabad municipal elections though, the BJP claimed a massive 48 seats - up from just four in the last polls - to re-invigorate its challenge to the ruling TRS ahead of the 2023 state election and the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.

The BJP has won four of five state elections held so far this year - Uttar Pradesh, Goa, Manipur, and Uttarakhand, and is expected to retain Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh, which vote in November-December. Shah's presence in the state today - as part of the second phase of the ' Praja Sangrama Yatra' that began last month - is seen as a boost in the long build-up to next year's election.

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