Telangana CM Revanth Reddy on Monday jibed at the Centre at a press conference in Hyderabad. He said the central government favours Gujarat and not Telangana. Terming the denial of permission for his US visit as an insult to the state, he said, “Narendra Modi and Bhupendra Patel belong to Gujarat, and permission has been given to the Gujarat Chief Minister to visit the US,” he said, adding that Patel had spent nearly eight days travelling across Canada and the US to attract investment.
He further mentioned that he had applied to the Ministry of External Affairs in the prescribed format, but received a one-line response rejecting his request on political grounds. Questioning the response, he said, “What does political grounds mean? What is the reason behind the political decision?” He alleged that PM Modi did not want him to attract investment to the state and was using the clearance process to favour Gujarat.
He further went on to accuse the Centre of trying to discourage companies and institutions from investing in Telangana. He alleged, “They are deliberately creating obstacles to investment in Telangana. They want to send a message to the world that anyone who invests in Telangana will face consequences.”
Allegations by the Telangana Chief Minister came days after the Ministry of External Affairs said his proposed US programme was not appropriate to the office he holds or the stated purpose of the visit. Spokesperson of MEA Randhir Jaiswal said on Friday that the proposed foreign visits of chief ministers and dignitaries were assessed before political clearance was granted. The ministry had cleared CM Reddy’s visit to the United Kingdom.
The chief minister mentioned that the US visit was meant to interact with investors and establish partnerships with leading universities and other institutions.
The event has attracted heavy attention on the political front. The Indian Overseas Congress USA’s Telangana chapter questioned why CM Reddy had been denied clearance while the Gujarat CM was allowed to visit the US. George Abraham, vice chairman of IOC USA, called it a troubling and unmistakable double standard. He asserted that education, employment and investment initiatives should remain beyond political rivalry.
Meanwhile, BJP president, state BJP president N. Ramachandra Rao, denied CM Reddy’s allegations and accused him of misleading the public about why his visit was denied clearance. Rao asked the CM to identify the strategic partners he had listed in the application and disclose whom he intended to meet.
He also criticised Reddy for comparing Telangana with Gujarat. Rao cited the difference in petrol prices and asked the Telangana government to reduce the value-added taxes on fuel.