In Telangana, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has put its full force behind establishing its presence. The party’s leaders have been targeting the ruling party, the Bharat Rashtra Samiti (TRS), and the Chief Minister, K. Chandrashekar Rao, consistently in their election campaigns. However, controversy erupted in the state following a statement by BJP’s Member of Parliament from Nizamabad, Arvind Dharmapuri.
Dharmapuri made a statement during a public gathering, suggesting that if anything were to happen to Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao and his son K.T. Rama Rao, the BJP would provide financial assistance to their families. This statement triggered a strong reaction not only from the TRS but also from the Bharat Rashtra Samiti.
Dharmapuri also questioned the KCR Life Insurance Scheme. He raised concerns about the promise made by the Bharat Rashtra Samiti under this scheme to provide a 5 lakh rupees life insurance to families of deceased farmers. The scheme specifies that if the deceased farmer is under 56 years of age, their family would receive the insurance. Dharmapuri questioned the effectiveness of this support.
Furthermore, he declared that if K. Chandrashekar Rao were to pass away, the BJP would offer 5 lakh rupees to his family, and if K.T. Rama Rao were to meet a similar fate, they would increase the amount to 10 lakh rupees. He added, “In any case, their time is up. But if young people were to lose their lives, the amount will be raised. If Kavita, KCR’s daughter, were to pass away, I would announce a sum of 20 lakh rupees.”
These remarks from Dharmapuri received a sharp rebuke not just from the TRS but also from Kavita, the daughter of KCR and leader of the Bharat Rashtra Samiti, who questioned, “Arvind Dharmapuri, for the statements he made against me, will he make similar statements for his own daughters?”