Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhara Rao‘s return to Hyderabad on Wednesday evening after a four-day stay in Delhi without meeting Prime Minister Modi was not a snub, according to sources in the Union Government. They said it was entirely because no appointment had been sought by Mr. Rao from the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO).
Mr. Rao had arrived in Delhi over the weekend determined, sources said, to discuss issues including procurement of State paddy by the Centre and the sharing of Krishna water with Andhra Pradesh. But he returned without meeting either Prime Minister Modi or Home Minister Amit Shah.
“The last time that Chief Minister of Telangana K. Chandrasekhara Rao requested an appointment with Prime Minister Modi was on September 1 which was granted on September 3,” said the sources.
The clarification came amid reports that it was a snub, whereas the Government had no such intention. BJP sources told The Hindu that the Chief Minister had raised all sorts of issues over paddy procurement to appear antagonistic to the BJP which was posing a political challenge to the Telangana Rashtra Samithi especially after the Huzurabad bypoll.
“The fact that he didn’t even put in a request for an appointment shows it’s just political posturing,” said a senior BJP leader from Telangana.
