National
KCR's party achieved Telangana but lost its way and became a family party: Vishweshwar Reddy (IANS Interview)
Hyderabad, April 26 (IANS) Konda Vishweshwar Reddy, one of the richest candidates in the ongoing Lok Sabha elections in the country, believes that people should come into politics when they have achieved their personal goals and not to achieve personal goals.
A tech entrepreneur, who is contesting once again from Chevella constituency and this time on a BJP ticket, says he entered politics when he had achieved all his goals.
“I entered politics after I was strong education-wise, exposure-wise, socially, health-wise and financially. I did not enter politics to reach my personal goals. It was after reaching personal goals that I entered politics to help others reach their goals,” said the former MP, who declared family assets of Rs 4,568 crore.
He told IANS in an interview that he strongly believes that the first duty of a person is to be strong and help the family first, then relatives, then his village, and may be later region, state and country.
“I will definitely not recommend politics for those who have not achieved their goals, if they don’t have a job and if they have not achieved their financial goals. Politics is not for achieving their financial goals or their career goals. Unfortunately, a lot of them do that. Some do it to make money and use power unethically and others do it for the charm of it or glamour of it. This is not right for them or the nation,” he said.
The family assets of the 64-year-old grew by a whopping 410 per cent in the last five years to reach Rs.4,568 crore.
KVR, as he is popularly known among his supporters, declared assets to the tune of Rs 1,240 crore while wife Sangeeta Reddy, Joint Managing Director of Apollo Hospitals Groups, owns assets worth Rs 3,208 crore.
Their dependent son has assets worth Rs 108 crore.
KVR, who holds a Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Madras and pursued his Master’s degree in the US, began his political journey in 2013 with Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS), now called Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS).
Grandson of Konda Ranga Reddy, former Deputy Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, KVR made his electoral debut in 2014 on a winning note from Chevella, comprising parts of Ranga Reddy District, named after his grandfather.
In 2018, he quit the TRS to join the Congress and entered the fray once again from Chevella in 2019. He, however, failed to retain the seat and unhappy with the state of affairs in the party, he switched loyalties to the BJP in 2022.
He is testing his electoral fortunes on the ticket of a third party in as many elections.
Unfazed by the criticism that comes his way for being a party-hopper; this technocrat-politician believes that he is continuing his journey.
“My journey is in the same direction. My ideology has not changed. I am for my people and my place. I am where I am,” he told IANS after a day of hectic campaigning in Yalal Village, about 115 km from Hyderabad.
“TRS was seen as the only party fighting for Telangana and I joined it. At that time TRS was non-existent in Ranga Reddy District. I was the first TRS MP and I built the party here. The sad thing is that we achieved Telangana but TRS lost its way and it became a family party. It started looting and got involved in scams. It started betraying people who fought for Telangana, threw them out and took everyone in. Those we thought of as saviours of Telangana became looters and betrayers of Telangana,” he said.
KVR claimed that personally he had a lot of respect in TRS but the party started looting Telangana, especially Chevella and Ranga Reddy District while keeping him in front.
“I joined the Congress as I wanted to fight those who looted Telangana. I was the only MP in this region who left the ruling party to join the people. I felt the Congress will defeat the party which cheated Telangana but it turned out that more than two-thirds of the Congress party got sold out. In Chevella each and every mandal organisation of Congress got sold out. It was not just Chevella but even in the Assembly two-third of the party got sold out. I am where I am. It is the party which got sold out,” he observed.
He believes that the BJP’s ideology fits his thinking. “The BJP’s larger goal or stated philosophy is Hindutva and nationalism but that Hindutva is Hindustan first. This includes states, regions and my region too. I doubt the BJP will betray my region or sell itself like TRS or Congress,” he said while claiming that he is the only politician with courage to say ‘no’ to the ruling party.
KVR, an innovator who headed companies like Wipro Healthcare and GE Medical Information Technology, feels that his journey as a politician has been exciting.
“Lots of people say that politics is dirty. Yes, there is a dirty element to it but there is something else too. It gave a different dimension to my old profession as an innovator and engineer.
“I used to enjoy my profession immensely. When you are presented with technical problems, be it software, mechanical or electrical engineering and you find a solution to it, it gives you money and business but more than that this gives you immense joy. I used to feel thrilled,” he recalled.
“Problems here have different dimensions. Thousands of people are jobless and if you somehow find a solution at least for a few hundred by finding or creating jobs, the joy is at a different level. It requires all your skills to find a solution to that problem.
“Politics can be really satisfying and sometimes it is able to fill the void because what do you do after achieving everything? After filling your belly, keeping your children happy, after buying a car!
“Of course you can have a social life, go to clubs, play cards and do things like that, but that’s routine social life. Politics is something that makes you feel alive. I think that is the purpose of life. You feel you will be able to use your full potential and politics allows you to do that,” he said.
As a former MP, KVR recounted the work he could do to help his constituents. Confident of a win this time, he believes that he can do much more as a BJP MP.
“My ideals, my goals and my narrative have not changed. BJP is truly focussed on bringing development down to the marginalised. I was independent for two years and I studied the BJP’s philosophy and methodology for reaching out to the poor through the Antyodaya scheme, which is helping the people at the bottom of the pyramid,” he said.
KVR mentioned that in the past the maximum bank loans were being given to the upper segment, and with kickbacks and all that, they never reached the bottom segment.
He believes that bank loan access to the bottom segment has gone up 7 to 8 fold in the last 10 years.
“The numbers show that. See Mudra loans or various other loans. Look at banks. All banks were bankrupt when Modi took over. Today SBI’s profits are greater than Reliance Industry’s profits. These are miracles that happen only because somebody is focussed and has a core philosophy,” he said.
When asked about what he plans to do for the constituency, he said he would continue to work on solutions for tomato farmers, who suffer huge losses due to price fluctuation every year.
He also plans to promote millets considering the growing global popularity of millets fuelled by PM Modi’s mission.
“While in BJP I can do much more, whether in terms of roads, road over bridges, road under bridges, increasing MSP for millets, forcing the state government to give bonus for areas where we don’t have irrigation projects,” he said.
KVR plans to complete work on the Hyderabad Bijapur Highway via Moinabad, Chevella, Manneguda and Pargi.
KVR wants to improve connectivity to Vikarabad through MMTS trains. As the MP in the past, he had got in principle approval for the project.
He believes basic civic and social infrastructure makes a city great. KVR’s priority will be to set up community schools as they will lessen the burden on the middle class, upper middle class and even rich families spending a huge fee on education of their children.
He pointed out that 95 per cent of American children study in community schools which are quasi government and quasi community institutions.
KVR is facing the Congress’ G Ranjith Reddy and BRS candidate Kasani Gyaneshwar in a three-cornered contest in Chevella.
In 2019, KVR lost to Ranjith Reddy of BRS by a margin of 14,317 votes. Peeved over being denied a ticket, Ranjith Reddy recently joined the Congress party.
KVR is not worried that the BJP holds no Assembly segment in the parliamentary constituency.
He recalled that when he won as MP for the first time there was no TRS MLA. He is confident that the BJP will increase its vote share by 300 per cent this time.
KVR claimed that the BJP has become strongest in rural areas where it was supposed to be weak, while it remained strong in urban areas.
KVR said he would push for a theatre district. Stating that human resources are the new resource around which a city grows, he said Hyderabad deserves a place for different performing arts, with clean street food and restaurants.
Chevella is a unique constituency spread over both urban and rural pockets. The information technology clusters like Madhapur, Kondapur, Gachibowli, Financial District and the areas known for booming real estate business on the city fringes and the rural segments like Tandur, Vikarabad, Pargi and Chevella all come under this constituency.
The constituency is also diverse in terms of the electorate, belonging to different religions, castes and even different states.
–IANS
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New Delhi, Aug 22 (IANS) Union Minister for Rural Development and Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Thursday said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will give certificates to 11 lakh new ‘Lakhpati Didis’ at a special function to be held at Jalgaon in Maharashtra on August 25 (Sunday).
The programme will have nationwide participation through the virtual mode.
The Prime Minister will release a revolving Community Investment Fund of Rs 2,500 crore, which will benefit about 48 lakh members of 4.3 lakh women Self Help Groups (SHGs), Shivraj Singh Chouhan said.
PM Modi will also release a bank loan of Rs 5,000 crore, which will benefit 25.8 lakh members of 2,35,400 Self Help Groups (SHGs).
Shivraj Singh Chouhan also said that people from about 30,000 places across 34 states and union territories including state capitals and district headquarters will join this program through the virtual route.
He said that Lakhpati Didis are women who earn Rs 1 lakh or more per annum. These Lakhpati Didis have not only pulled their families out of poverty but are also becoming role models for the rest of society, the Union Minister said.
“The Rural Development Ministry has already created 1 crore Lakhpati Didis. Now our target is to create 3 crore Lakhpati Didis in the next 3 years. It is heartening to note that one of these community resource persons has created 95 Lakhpati Didis,” Shivraj Singh Chouhan said.
He further explained that the Ministry has adopted a structured process to enable the SHG families to earn an annual income of Rs 1 lakh or more.
This includes capacitating National Resource Persons and developing Master Trainers in each state.
These Master Trainers further train the Community Resource Persons on business planning, financing and convergence process.
The cadre of 3 lakh Community Resource Persons, who have been specially trained in business planning and the skilling of SHG members, are doing a great service in this regard, the minister added.
Some of these community resource persons will also be facilitated.
As of now, the Ministry of Rural Development has formed 15 lakh Lakhpati Didis during the first 100 days which has succeeded the 11 lakh target for the period, Shivraj Singh Chouhan said.
–IANS
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Agartala, Aug 22 (IANS) The flood situation in Tripura, which has been lashed by heavy rains for the last four days, remained grim on Thursday and the India Meteorological Department (IMD) retained its ‘Red alert’ for all eight districts, officials said.
They added that more National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams have been deployed as the rains and floods continue to play havoc.
Till Thursday, 12 deaths, including that of a 12-year-old girl and a woman were reported from South Tripura, Gomati, and Khowai districts and two persons were also said to be missing.
A Disaster Management Department official said that two more fresh casualties due to the floods were reported from south Tripura and Gomati districts, while around 65,500 people are taking shelter in 450 relief camps in all eight districts.
He said that 17 lakh people were affected in the entire state, which witnessed the monsoon flood in such a catastrophic manner for the first time in several decades.
Chief Minister Manik Saha, who is supervising the disaster management work, spoke to Union Home Minister Amit Shah for the second day on Thursday and apprised him of the prevailing scenario.
Home Minister Shah said in a post on X, “Spoke with CM Tripura, Dr Manik Saha, and took stock of the flood situation in the state. The Centre is rushing teams of NDRF, apart from boats and helicopters, to the state to assist the local government in relief and rescue operations. Assured of all possible assistance from the Centre as and when required. The Modi government firmly stands with our sisters and brothers in Tripura during this hour of crisis.”
Later, the Chief Minister while expressing gratitude to the Home Minister said that HM Shah informed him that 11 NDRF teams would be sent to Tripura from different locations in Assam and Arunachal Pradesh.
He said arrangements would also be made for choppers to airlift stranded people in the flood-affected areas.
“More number of boats would also be sent along with the NDRF teams. The entire state government machinery has been working round the clock to tackle the unprecedented natural calamity. I thank public representatives, social workers and the people at large for cooperating with the state government in this hour of crisis,” CM Saha said.
The central government has provided two helicopters for airlifting stranded people in Gomati and South Tripura districts.
Following the directions of the state government, due to the heavy rain and flooding, all educational institutions remained closed.
An India Meteorological Department (IMD) official said that though a ‘heavy’ to ‘very heavy’ rainfall alert has been continued and a ‘Red alert’ has been sounded in all eight districts, the rain is likely to reduce slightly from Thursday evening.
“The low pressure area over north Bangladesh and neighbourhood persisted over the same region on Thursday. The associated cyclonic circulation now extends up to 9.4 km above mean sea level. It is likely to move nearly westwards across West Bengal during the next 48 hours. Additionally, a cyclonic circulation is likely to form over North Bay of Bengal and neighbourhood on August 24,” the official said.
The IMD recorded 233 mm rainfall in Agartala from 8.30 A.M. on August 21 to till 8.30 A.M. on Thursday.
According to Disaster Management Department officials over 1,055 houses were damaged either fully or partially and hundreds of trees were uprooted blocking many important highways.
Landslides occurred in 2,032 places across the state, out of which 1,789 locations were cleared by Thursday evening.
As per preliminary estimates, around 5,000 hectares of vegetable farms and 1.20 lakh hectares of other crop lands are still submerged.
Water Resource Department officials said that most of the prominent rivers in Tripura were either flowing above ‘critical’ or ‘danger’ levels while the state’s main river Gomati has crossed the ‘extreme danger’ level in many places of Gomati and Sepahijala districts, as rainfall has continued.
The Northeast Frontier Railways (NFR) has cancelled 10 local trains in Tripura.
An NFR spokesman said that due to heavy rain railway tracks were damaged in Gomati district, forcing the authorities to cancel these trains.
A Defence spokesman said that following the requisition from state administrations, four columns of Assam Rifles were deployed in different districts and they were working in close coordination with the civil administration to rescue civilians stranded due to floods.
First aid and essential items have been distributed by the Assam Rifles to hundreds of stranded people and those in relief camps.
–IANS
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New Delhi, Aug 22 (IANS) The Muslim organisation on Thursday criticised the Union government over the Waqf Amendment Bill 2024, calling it unconstitutional, undemocratic and unfair as it goes against the freedom of religion guaranteed by the Constitution.
“Amendment bill being brought to Waqf is unconstitutional, undemocratic and unfair. The proposed amendments to the Waqf Act are also against the freedom of religion provided by the Constitution and also violates articles 14-15 and 25 of the Constitution,” said Jamiat-i-Ulama Hind, President, Maulana Arshad Madani while addressing a joint press conference of Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind and Muslim Personal Law Board at the Constitution Club in New Delhi.
He added that the amendment bill is also the government’s interference in religious matters which Muslims will not accept.
“Under the guise of the amending bill, an attempt is being made to deprive the Muslims of this great country and of its heritage which our forefathers have left in the form of Waqf for the betterment of the poor, destitute and needy people of the country,” said Maulana Arshad Madani.
He said that amendments have been made in the bill without consulting the Muslim religious figures and taking the Muslims into confidence while Waqf is a purely religious and Shariah matter because once the Waqf is applied.
“The donor does not remain the owner of the property rather that property is transferred to the ownership of Allah,” he explained.
Maulana Madani said that while presenting the Amendment Bill in the parliament, it was claimed that it would bring transparency to the work and would benefit the weak and needy people of the Muslim society.
“This bill is proof of the malicious intent of the government and its dangerous plans. If this bill is passed not only the protection of Waqf properties across the country may be in danger but also a door of new conflicts will be opened and the status of those mosques, tombs, buildings, imam badas and lands which are Waqf properties or which are located on Waqf land will be made doubtful,” Maulana Madani said.
He added that instead of the Waqf Tribunal and Waqf Commissioners, all powers under this bill will be transferred to District Collectors.
“By increasing the number of members of the Central Waqf Council and Waqf Boards, their status is also being changed and the door is being opened to appoint non-Muslims in it as well. This bill will also remove the requirement of being Muslim for officers and members,” he said.
Maulana Madani said that this is not a Hindu-Muslim issue but a constitutional problem and this bill is also against Muslim religious freedom.
He said that the Shrine Board, which was formed for the maintenance and protection of Hindu religious places, had a clear explanation that Jains, Sikhs or Buddhists would not be its members.
He questioned that if Jains, Sikhs and Buddhists cannot be members of the Shrine Board, how can the nomination and appointment of non-Muslims be justified in the Waqf Board?
“While Jainism and Buddhism are not considered separate from Hinduism, they are considered a separate sect. If they cannot participate in the shrine board even if they are Hindus on the basis of being a sect, then why is the nomination and appointment of non-Muslims in the Waqf boards made mandatory?” Maulana Madani asked.
He said that there are laws in Uttar Pradesh, Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh etc. that those who manage the affairs of the Hindu religion’s property must be Hindus.
“Just as no other religious group can interfere in the religious affairs of Hindus, Sikhs and Christians in the same way, the management of Waqf properties should also be done only by Muslims. We do not accept any such proposal in the endowment system,” he added.
He said that it is clear that the intention of the government is not pure and through this bill, its purpose is not to bring transparency in the work and to benefit the Muslim community but to deprive Muslims of their Waqf properties and to weaken the claim of Muslims from the Waqf properties.
Maulana Madani said that an endless series of new conflicts can start in this way and taking advantage of the weak legal status of Muslims in the amendment bill may make it easier to occupy Waqf properties.
He added that we are not talking about one or two amendments but most of the amendments in the bill are unconstitutional and dangerous and destructive for the Waqf.
“This bill is also an attack on the constitutional powers given to Muslims. If the Constitution has given religious freedom and equal rights to every citizen then some special powers have also been given to the minorities living in the country. And the amendment bill negates all these powers completely,” he said.
Maulana Madani added that under the Waqf Amendment Bill 2024, it has been suggested that Section 40 of the current Act should be removed while the 2006 Joint Parliamentary Committee on Waqf and Justice Sachar Committee reported that a large number of Waqf properties are illegally occupied while the incumbent government is also referring to the same Sachar Committee report.
“Despite this, it has been suggested in the 2024 bill that the State Waqf Board shall not be empowered to identify properties which are illegally occupied and to try to recover them. This proposal of the government is very harmful to the existence of endowments,” he said.
He added that during the last ten years, the minorities of the country, especially the Muslims, were put on the margins, and to make them believe that now, as citizens, they have no rights and powers, many laws have been forcibly brought and implemented.
“This Waqf Amendment Bill is also one of them by passing it in any way there is a conspiracy to forcefully apply it on Muslims, which we cannot accept,” he said.
–IANS
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National
Calcutta HC questions Bengal govt's 'late realisation' to probe financial irregularities at RG Kar
Kolkata, Aug 22 (IANS) The Calcutta High Court on Thursday questioned the decision of the West Bengal government to set up a special investigation team to probe the alleged financial irregularities at the state-run R.G. Kar Medical College & Hospital in Kolkata when the controversial former principal Sandip Ghosh was in charge of the institution, even as the state health department was informed about the irregularities last year.
A single-judge bench of Justice Rajarshi Bhardwaj made this observation while hearing a petition by the whistle-blower in the matter — former deputy medical superintendent of RG Kar — Akhtar Ali, who had sought the High Court’s intervention to seek protection in anticipation of security threat for being vocal against Sandip Ghosh.
On Wednesday, Ali also filed a public interest litigation seeking a probe by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) probe into the alleged financial irregularities at RG Kar.
During the hearing, Justice Bhardwaj observed that “from the inclusion of senior police officers in the special investigation team, it is evident that the matter is serious, and wondered why the team was constituted a year after the matter was brought to the notice of the state government”.
The state government counsel argued that the petition has been deliberately filed at this moment amid the recent incident of the rape and murder of a woman doctor in the R.G. Kar Medical College & Hospital.
The state government counsel also questioned why the petitioner remained silent for one year after the complaint was not acted upon as claimed by him.
The Calcutta High Court also directed the state government counsel to present a detailed argument on the formation of SIT on Friday.
The West Bengal government earlier this week announced the formation of a special investigation team comprising four senior IPS officers and headed by an officer of the rank of Inspector General of Police to prove the allegation of financial irregularities at RG Kar since 2021, when Sandip Ghosh was the principal there.
Opposition parties have already claimed that the formation of SIT by the state government was nothing but an eyewash, and it had been created not with the intention of revealing the truth behind the financial irregularities, but rather with the motive of destroying evidence in the matter.
–IANS
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Bhubaneswar, Aug 22 (IANS) Amid the furore over two deaths caused by the consumption of spurious liquor in Ganjam district, Odisha Excise Minister Prithiviraj Harichandan announced on Thursday that a probe by the Revenue Divisional Commissioner into the hooch tragedy will be initiated soon.
At least 23 persons from Moundpur, Jenapur, and Karabalua in Chikiti block had consumed country liquor from an unlicensed shop on Monday evening. They later fell ill and were admitted to a nearby hospital, where two of them died during treatment on Wednesday, prompting Harichandan to direct the officials to take all necessary steps to stop the illegal trade of liquor in the state.
Speaking to mediapersons, Harichandan said, “An RDC-level probe will be launched in this matter within the next couple of days. Action will be taken based on its report which will be submitted within two months. Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi will soon take the decision in this regard.”
He also vowed that the network of illegal liquor trade in the state will be completely destroyed within a year.
“As many as 217 illegal liquor manufacturing units have been identified in the state which will be demolished soon. Instructions have already been issued in this regard. Around 117 persons have so far been arrested following raids in different districts,” Harichandan.
He also assured the people that no illegal liquor unit will remain in existence in the state.
The Minister said the Excise Superintendent in Berhampur, Pradip Panigrahi, has been transferred for negligence in duty on Wednesday, while the government has also suspended Excise Inspector Ramesh Chandara Mohanty and Sub-inspector Prasanna Kumar Jali for similar lapses.
The deceased have been identified as Jura Behera and Lokanath Behera from Jenapur village, who died at the MKCG Medical College and Hospital in Berhampur.
The opposition BJD has also the issue in the state Assembly on Thursday, demanding resignation of the Excise Minister.
–IANS
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PM Modi to give certificates to 11 lakh Lakhpati Didis; roll out Rs 2,500 crore fund- Tripura flood death toll rises to 12, more NDRF teams deployed (Lead)
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