Hyderabad, January 3: Congress senior leader and Telangana Government Advisor Mohammed Ali Shabbir has thrown an open challenge to BRS Working President K. Tarakarama Rao for a debate on the unprecedented increase in the KCR family’s assets, which have grown over 30 times in the last 14 years.

Speaking at a press conference at Gandhi Bhavan on Friday, Shabbir Ali ridiculed KTR’s claims of honesty and demanded an explanation for the exponential rise in the family’s wealth. Presenting official asset declarations, he highlighted that KTR’s assets grew from Rs 4.32 crore in 2009 to Rs 53.32 crore in 2023, an increase of over 12 times. Harish Rao’s assets rose from Rs 67.57 lakh in 2009 to Rs 24.29 crore in 2023, marking a 36-fold increase. Formers Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao’s (KCR) assets jumped from Rs 86 lakh in 2004 to Rs 58.93 crore in 2023, growing over 68 times, while Kalvakuntla Kavitha’s assets surged from Rs 6.19 crore in 2014 to Rs 39.79 crore in 2023, an increase of over six times. On average, the KCR family’s wealth increased by an astounding 30.81 times during this period.

Shabbir Ali demanded accountability, questioning whether the family had legitimate business ventures or investments to justify such massive financial growth. He challenged KTR to provide a detailed account of his family’s wealth in an open debate, asserting that transparency was necessary to clear allegations of corruption.

He also accused KTR of making baseless allegations against the Congress government to divert attention from corruption charges against the BRS government and the KCR family. Shabbir Ali cited high-profile cases, including a judicial probe into irregularities in the Kaleshwaram Project, allegations of phone tapping, and an FIR in the Formula E Race Car scam. He referred to a Special Investigation Team (SIT) probe ordered by Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy into irregularities in leasing the Outer Ring Road (ORR) to a private company for 30 years. These cases, he said, exposed rampant corruption during the BRS government’s tenure. He said BRS leaders were involved in several other scams and they would soon go to jail. He questioned why KTR was focusing on baseless criticism instead of addressing these serious allegations.

He said KTR made a U-turn in the Formula E race case. Initially, KTR defended sanctioning the funds in his capacity as the concerned minister. However, in his affidavit submitted to the High Court, he shifted the blame onto officials, claiming it was the responsibility of the bureaucrats to ensure all necessary approvals were in place before transferring the funds. He said KTR’s attempts to hide corruption would fail.

Dismissing claims that Congress was pursuing a political vendetta, Shabbir Ali pointed to a case booked by the previous BRS government against Revanth Reddy. He highlighted that Revanth Reddy was implicated in a false case concerning drone footage of KTR’s farmhouse while he was attending Parliament. KTR later denied ownership of the farmhouse, claiming it belonged to a friend. Shabbir Ali accused BRS of arresting Revanth Reddy on flimsy grounds, a clear example of political vendetta. He stated that if Congress had adopted similar tactics, the entire KCR family could have been arrested, but Congress, he emphasised, believes in the rule of law and judiciary.

Shabbir Ali also criticised BRS MLC K. Kavitha for wrongly blaming the Congress government for a rise in crime rates. He attributed most crimes to alcohol abuse, which he said was promoted by the BRS government through its liquor policies. He reminded that Kavitha was arrested in a liquor scam and was currently out on interim bail – not acquitted by the court.

He further accused the previous BRS government of doing injustice to Backward Classes (BCs) by reducing their reservation quota in local bodies through amendments to the Panchayat Raj Act. Shabbir Ali highlighted that the Congress government had completed a caste census to ensure justice for OBCs and other communities.

Shabbir Ali welcomed the proposal made by the Cabinet Sub-Committee to restrict Rythu Bharosa funds to cultivable lands only. He criticised the previous BRS government for wasting public money by distributing Rythu Bandhu funds to all landowners, regardless of whether they were cultivating their lands. Citing examples, he mentioned a landowner with 200 acres on the banks of the Godavari River who received Rs 20 lakh annually despite not growing any crops. He pointed out that the land remained inundated for most of the year, making cultivation impossible. Similarly, he noted that several lands in LB Nagar had long been converted for non-agricultural use, yet their owners continued to receive Rythu Bandhu funds simply because they held patta lands.

Shabbir Ali stated that the Congress government was addressing this misuse of taxpayers’ money by ensuring that Rythu Bharosa funds are given only to cultivable lands. He emphasised that there is nothing wrong in asking farmers how much land they own and how much of it they are actually cultivating, as this step ensures fairness and proper utilisation of government resources. He condemned BRS party’s criticism for this fair approach.

Highlighting the achievements of the Congress government within its first year, Shabbir Ali stated that Rs 61,194 crore was spent on welfare schemes, benefiting every section of society. An additional Rs 9,888 crore was allocated for targeted initiatives for BCs, SCs, STs, minorities, women, and children. Telangana became the only state in India to waive Rs 21,000 crore in crop loans, benefitting 25 lakh farmers. The government also provided over 50,000 government jobs, free electricity up to 200 units for households, subsidised gas cylinders at Rs 500 each, and free RTC bus travel for women. On housing, he noted that the government had begun constructing 4.5 lakh houses annually under the Indiramma Indlu scheme, building on the Congress’s legacy of constructing nearly 40 lakh houses in undivided Andhra Pradesh between 2004 and 2014. In contrast, he criticised the BRS government for failing to construct even one lakh houses in a decade.

He said KTR’s accusations insulted both the Congress government and the people of Telangana, who decisively voted for change.

Shabbir Ali urged KTR to stop criticising the Congress government and explain how the KCR family’s assets grew so significantly over the years. He called upon KTR to accept the challenge of an open debate, asserting that until transparency is established, KTR’s claims of integrity would remain unconvincing. (eom)