Jupally waits for BRS leaders at Press Club after throwing a challenge on Telangana debts

A day after indulging in war of words over debts raised by the previous Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) government and the alleged corruption in the present government, Telangana Excise Minister Jupally Krishna Rao appeared at the Press Club Hyderabad, for a debate on the State’s finances, corporation borrowings, Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) funding, pending liabilities and interest burden.

However, the BRS MLA T. Harish Rao, whom the minister invited for an open debate in front of the media, did not appear. He, however, replied to Mr Krishna Rao’s letter, stating that the Minister and the Chief Minister Revanth Reddy had quoted different figures on the State’s debts and there was no consistency in their argument.

Questioning the absence of the BRS leaders, Mr. Krishna Rao said he would not be cowed down by the false propaganda on the BRS social media handles, and he had always practised politics of fairness. He said let the BRS chief K. Chandrashekhar Rao respond to the letter he released on the debts raised by the BRS government. “KCR is abstaining from the Assembly where he could have responded. At least, KCR should hold a press conference and condemn the debts data released by me as false.

At a press conference earlier in the morning, Mr Krishna Rao remained committed to resigning if the amount of BRS debt he cited was proven incorrect. “I am ready to resign, and the BRS leadership should reveal what they would do if this amount was right. Let’s discuss and debate at Press Club Hyderabad at 5 pm if you are ready,” he said. He showed the videos of Mr. Rama Rao and senior leader T. Harish Rao claiming different figures on the loans raised during the BRS regime.

Mr. Krishna Rao also released an open letter to KTR accusing the previous government of leaving the State under an unprecedented debt burden. He said that Telangana’s total outstanding liabilities, including pending bills, increased from ₹90,161 crore at the time of State formation in June 2014 to ₹8,21,651 crore by December 1, 2023, when the BRS left office.

According to the minister, the State’s FRBM borrowings rose from ₹72,658 crore to ₹3,89,673 crore, while loans raised through SPVs, government-backed corporations and other entities increased from ₹17,502 crore to ₹2,82,084 crore. He also alleged that the previous government left unpaid dues of ₹40,154 crore towards employee salaries, contractors’ bills and welfare schemes, besides another ₹1,09,740 crore owed to power distribution companies, Singareni, SC/ST Sub-Plan commitments and other liabilities.

The Minister listed borrowings raised through various government corporations, including ₹88,651 crore for the Kaleshwaram project and other irrigation corporations, ₹20,200 crore through the Telangana Drinking Water Supply Corporation, ₹85,493 crore by power utilities, ₹56,146 crore by the Civil Supplies Corporation, ₹6,470 crore by the Housing Corporation, ₹4,221 crore by the Road Development Corporation, ₹4,906 crore by GHMC and ₹2,352 crore by the Hyderabad Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board.

He also questioned why borrowings for the Kaleshwaram and Mission Bhagiratha projects, raised through government-backed corporations, were kept outside FRBM debt calculations.