Telangana: BRS Criticizes Congress for Allocating Rs 200 Crore to Miss World Pageant

Hyderabad: Telangana's opposition party, Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS), has sharply criticized Chief Minister Revanth Reddy's recent admissions regarding the state's financial challenges. Reddy acknowledged a Rs 71,000 crore revenue shortfall, difficulties in paying salaries and dearness allowances, and a lack of funds for capital expenditure. The BRS seized on these admissions to question the decision to spend Rs 200 crore on hosting the Miss World beauty pageant.

The BRS lawmakers protested on Tuesday during the reading of the annual budget in the Assembly. They carried dried crops to highlight the “Congress-made drought” and voiced strong opposition to spending on the beauty pageant. They demanded that the government allocate Rs 25,000 per acre to support farmers who have been impacted by the drought.

KT Rama Rao, a senior BRS leader, also criticized the decision to host the 72nd Miss World pageant in the state. He called the logic behind spending public funds on such an event "perverse." He compared this to the controversy surrounding the Formula-E race in Hyderabad, which allegedly involved the mismanagement of Rs 46 crore. He questioned, "Spending Rs 46 crore for a Formula-E race was wrong, but spending Rs 200 crore for a beauty contest is right?"

Rama Rao further criticized the Congress government, accusing them of mismanaging the state’s finances. He pointed out the Rs 71,000 crore deficit and questioned whether Telangana was truly progressing or falling behind. BRS spokesperson Krishank echoed similar concerns, citing the government’s "double standards."

Chief Minister Revanth Reddy responded, blaming his predecessor, K Chandrasekhar Rao, for the financial woes. He accused the BRS of leaving the Congress government with a huge public debt, which now requires monthly interest payments of Rs 1.53 lakh crore. Reddy suggested that if this debt hadn't been accumulated, his government could have provided more benefits, such as waiving farm loans for an additional 70 lakh people.

Deputy Chief Minister Bhatti Vikramarka, who is also the Finance Minister, reassured the public that the government is working to resolve financial backlogs, noting that Rs 10,000 crore in dues had already been cleared.

This will be the second consecutive year India hosts the Miss World pageant, with the 2024 edition previously held in Mumbai.