Hyderabad : In a heated address at a Praja Ashirvada Sabha in Shadnagar on Monday, BRS President and Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao accused the Congress of deliberately hindering the timely disbursement of Rythu Bandhu financial assistance to farmers in Telangana, just ahead of the Assembly elections. Rao alleged that Congress leaders were resorting to desperate measures to secure votes, even if it meant causing distress to farmers during the crucial Yasangi season.
Rao disclosed that he had directed officials to commence the distribution of Rythu Bandhu funds for the Yasangi season before the elections. However, the Telangana Congress promptly filed a complaint with the Election Commission of India (ECI) to halt the process. Despite the complaint, the ECI initially granted permission for the State government to deposit the funds into the bank accounts of farmers for just one day.
Expressing his dismay, the Chief Minister revealed that TPCC vice-president G Niranjan filed another complaint with the ECI, leading to the Commission withdrawing its orders permitting the disbursement of Rythu Bandhu funds. Rao pointed out the irony that many Congress leaders and activists themselves benefited from the Rythu Bandhu scheme. He questioned the ethics of supporting a party that, in his view, attempted to take away crucial financial support from farmers just before the harvest.
Chandrashekhar Rao called on Congress activists to reflect on the actions of their leaders. He emphasized that the Congress, in addition to obstructing Rythu Bandhu, was proposing a new provision to extend the scheme to tenant farmers rather than the actual landowners. Rao cautioned that such a move could potentially spark unnecessary legal disputes over land ownership between landowners and tenant farmers.
