Telangana: Only K Chandrashekar Rao's family has benefited; others in despair, says Sonia Gandhi

United Progressive Alliance chairperson Sonia Gandhi on Friday accused the ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) of betraying the people of Telangana on the aspirations of statehood movement pertaining to water, funds and jobs.

Addressing a massive public meeting on the outskirts of the city on her first visit to the state after its formation in 2014, Sonia Gandhi said she was saddened to see there was no positive change in the lives of people even after formation of Telangana.

Targeting TRS president and interim chief minister K Chandrashekar Rao for the first time, she said only his family had benefited from the statehood while four crore people of the state were left in the lurch. The UPA chief said despite several difficulties, the Congress had pushed for carving out Telangana as India’s newest state even while preparing to pay heavy political price.


She said aspirations of farmers, unemployed youth, students, women and underprivileged sections in Telangana remained unattended even after four-and-ahalf years.

“No one other than KCR’s family benefited in Telangana with all the sections of the society continuing under severe despair,” she said while appealing to the people to end “the undemocratic and autocratic rule” of the TRS.

Forget about uplifting the farmers, the TRS party resorted to coercive land acquisition without honouring farmer-friendly provisions of the Land Acquisition Act the UPA had brought in, she said.