Prime Minister Narendra Modi may find Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao missing at the Begumpet airport on Thursday when he arrives for the Indian School of Business (ISB) convocation, but his party will be according him a warm welcome with a felicitation programme planned at a makeshift stage at the airport on Thursday.
Senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and national OBC president K. Laxman was not sure if the Prime Minister will be addressing the party leaders and cadre who are expected to converge in large numbers at the airport. “The cadre will be thrilled if it happens, but as of now it is not on the agenda. Mr. Modi’s visit has already galvanised the party and there is a lot of enthusiasm and expectation to meet and greet him”, he said, talking to the media after inspecting the arrangements underway on Thursday.
Expressing “regret” over the Chief Minister deciding to skip meeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his visit, he said: “It is not good. We have to keep some traditions alive, show decorum and have mutual respect for the top posts. KCR should have been here and addressed the ISB students along with Mr. Modi as has been the custom. Politics should be restricted to election time and it is not good to do politicking at all times,” remarked Mr. K. Laxman.
The ISB has also confirmed that while an invitation was extended to the Chief Minister, the latter has expressed his inability because of his visit to Bengaluru, he said and claimed that the TS people are “aghast and disgusted” at this development. The Prime Minister also intends to give an “assurance to the people of Telangana” about forming a “double engine” government here, as the current TRS regime is only focused on politics all the time throwing the administration asunder without bothering about the plight of farmers, unemployed youth and other sections”, said the BJP leader.
“Farmers are suffering due to delay in procurement, loss in recent rains, denial of minimum support price, dealers cutting through system and so on with some even resorting to suicides. But our Chief Minister does not have the time or inclination to console them or provide any compensation, but he has been issuing cheques to farmers of other states,” he pointed out.
Telangana people are “vexed” with the KCR government for “politicking” all the time, “forgetting election promises and ignoring the issues of the poor, unemployed youth and other sections”. The TRS government, which has been making a hue and cry about the Centre not allotting funds, has completely sidelined the gram panchayats and local bodies with its own partymen leading the protests, he said.
“The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has labelled him (KCR) as the most corrupt chief minister but he was still invited to Delhi and Punjab as he was distributing cheques to their farmers,” he observed and charged that “no Opposition party was ready to touch KCR as they do not trust him.” Party leaders like NVSS Prabhakar, Ch.Ramachandra Reddy, D.Pradeep Kumar, S.Prakash Reddy, and Shyam Sundar Goud were present.
