VHR: If Revanth Reddy Is Arrested, Congress Will Sweep LS Polls in Telangana

 Kakinada: Senior Congress leader V. Hanumantha Rao on Friday said that any attempt by Prime Minister Narendra Modi or Union home minister Amit Shah to arrest Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy over Amit Shah's morphed video would result in a sweeping victory for the Congress in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls in Telangana state.

Speaking to the media alongside former Union minister M.M. Pallam Raju, contesting as a candidate for the Kakinada Lok Sabha seat, Rao criticised the BJP for engaging in vindictive politics as it has been implicating opposition party chief ministers like Arvind Kejriwal and Hemant Soren just before elections.

Rao issued a direct challenge to Modi, daring him to arrest Revanth Reddy, confident that such an action would only bolster the Congress's electoral prospects. He contrasted Modi’s alleged vindictiveness with the approach of former prime minister Atal Behari Vajpayee, who used to respect opposition voices and foster a more inclusive political environment.

Highlighting the BJP's hypocritical stance on Muslim reservations and the Muslim community, he accused the BJP of threatening to revoke four per cent reservations for Muslims in Telangana while also attempting to court Muslim voters with promises of mosque construction and support for religious leaders.

He emphasised that although the manifesto was crafted by the Telugu Desam and Jana Sena parties, the BJP's inclusion in the alliance meant it was equally bound by its contents.

Speaking about the Congress manifesto, he said his party;s government plans to increase reservations for Backward Classes and lift the 50 per cent reservation cap, as well as conduct a caste census if the Congress-led coalition comes to power.

Pallam Raju criticised Modi for his failure to protect the country's borders in the face of Chinese incursions. He lamented the weakening of democracy in India, and said that the country was increasingly under the grip of dictatorship.