CM's 'corrupt BRS MLAs' remarks leaves party leaders worried

HYDERABAD: The remarks of BRS president and Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao that he has a list of "corrupt and non-performing MLAs" who will be booted out have sparked debate and left many leaders speculating as well as worried about who might be on the list.

Addressing the BRS plenary at Telangana Bhavan on Thursday, the Chief Minister gave a stern warning to a few party MLAs, claiming that he had a list of "corrupt MLAs" who extorted up to Rs 3 lakh from beneficiaries in order to extend the Rs 10-lakh Dalit Bandhu scheme. Rao also warned a few MLAs against collecting funds to approve 2BHKs to beneficiaries.

There is talk in party circles that the CM's remarks and provided fodder for Opposition parties to accuse the BRS of corruption. BJP leaders reacted quickly, petitioning the Telangana High Court and the Anti-Corruption Bureau to launch an investigation into the CM's remarks.

Opposition parties are also demanding that the CM make the names of corrupt MLAs public, expel them from the party immediately, and recover any money from them. Although the CM has earlier warned MLAs and party leaders while addressing party meetings, this is the first time the CM has made such 'harsh and strong comments' against his own party MLAs, causing a stir in party circles.

A day after the CM's remarks, the names of several 'corrupt MLAs' and 'non-performing MLAs' circulated on social media platforms, causing anxiety among the legislators as well as their followers. According to some social media posts, the names of 15 MLAs figure on the CM's list of “corrupt MLAs”, while the names of 35 MLAs figure on the list of "nonperforming MLAs," and these MLAs are certain to lose their tickets in the 2018 Assembly elections.

Although the BRS plenary was held as a 'closed door meeting' for the first time, as opposed to previous years when it was open to all and held in HiTex or function halls, and media personnel were issued passes to cover the event, the contents of CM's speech were given to media as 'leaks' by BRS circles.

The CM's comments were covered prominently in print and electronic media.  If the 'leaks' were fake, the party or party leaders would have denied or issued a clarification. However, there has been no such denial or clarification from the BRS or party leaders on this issue thus far, lending credence to the 'leaks' given to the media.