Hyderabad, Dec.18 (RAHNUMA): Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy on Thursday declared that the Congress party had achieved a spectacular victory in the recently concluded three-phase Panchayat elections in Telangana, calling the outcome a clear verdict on his government’s two-year rule.
Speaking to the media at his residence in Jubilee Hills along with several state ministers, the Chief Minister expressed gratitude to the people for blessing the Congress party and congratulated party workers and election officials for the peaceful and successful conduct of the polls.
According to Revanth Reddy, the Congress party won 7,527 out of 12,702 Gram Panchayats, while 808 Congress rebels also emerged victorious, taking the party’s effective share to 66 percent. He stated that the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) won 3,511 seats, while the BJP secured 710 seats.
Alleging that the BRS and BJP contested the elections as an alliance, the Chief Minister said the “BRS – BJP combine” managed to win only 4,221 GP seats, amounting to 33 percent of the total. “These results reflect the people’s confidence in our governance”, he claimed.
Revanth Reddy also recalled Congress victories in the Secunderabad Cantonment and Jubilee Hills Assembly by-elections, stating that the party had secured a majority in 87 out of 94 Assembly constituencies where Panchayat elections were held. He emphasized that the elections concluded peacefully and democratically, without any vindictive action against opposition parties.
ON SPEAKER’S DECISION AND DEFECTIONS
Responding to criticism by BRS and BJP leaders over the Assembly Speaker’s decision regarding defections of BRS MLAs, the Chief Minister said he would not comment on the Speaker’s ruling. “If anyone is dissatisfied, they are free to approach the courts”, he said.
He pointed out that former minister T. Harish Rao himself had earlier stated that BRS had only 37 MLAs, based on which time was allotted in the Assembly. He questioned as to why objections were being raised now. He further remarked that BRS chief K. Chandrashekar Rao was currently inactive in politics and claimed that even the people of Gajwel had lost hope in him. “Parties with active leadership maintain discipline; parties without leadership behave otherwise”, he quipped.
ASSEMBLY SESSION ON MPTC, ZPTC AND MUNICIPAL POLLS
With the completion of Sarpanch elections, discussions have intensified over the conduct of MPTC, ZPTC and Municipal elections. Buoyed by its Panchayat performance, the Congress government is keen to proceed with the remaining local body polls.
Revanth Reddy said the government would soon convene a ‘special Assembly session’ to seek the views of all parties on holding these elections. He clarified that opposition parties would be given an opportunity to express their opinions, particularly in view of the 42 per cent BC reservations issue. “The future course of action will be decided democratically after discussions in the Assembly”, the Chief Minister said, adding that elections could be held as early as January next year, if consensus is achieved.
