BRS Calls Panel Report On Kaleshwaram Project 'Political Vendetta'

The Bharat Rashtra Samithi has launched a blistering attack on the 60-page synopsis, shared by the Congress, of the 660-page PC Ghose Commission report on the Kaleshwaram project.

Former minister Harish Rao, who is also blamed in the report for his role as former irrigation minister, calling it a "baseless report" and a "political conspiracy" orchestrated by the Congress and BJP.

Speaking at a press conference at Telangana Bhavan, Harish Rao presented a detailed rebuttal to the government's claims, accusing the Revanth Reddy-led administration of using the commission to target BRS leaders instead of focusing on governance.

The Kaleshwaram project, a centerpiece of the previous BRS government, has been under intense scrutiny since the Congress came to power in Telangana. Following a partial collapse of a pier at the Medigadda barrage in 2023, the government appointed a judicial commission headed by former Supreme Court judge PC Ghose to investigate the project's construction and alleged irregularities.

The commission's findings, which were recently revealed in a selective manner by the government, have become a major political flashpoint. The BRS, which has maintained that the project is a technological marvel and a boon for the state, views the commission and the government's actions as a politically motivated attack on its legacy and its leader, K Chandrashekar Rao, popular as KCR.

Harish Rao's press conference was a comprehensive defense of the Kaleshwaram project and a counter-attack on the Congress government. Rao alleged that the commission's investigation was a "conspiracy" and a one-sided affair, with the government leaking information to the media before BRS leaders were even served with notices. He challenged the government to table the full 665-page report in the Assembly, vowing to expose the facts to the public and prove that the report's claims are unfounded.

Rao provided a detailed justification for the BRS government's decision to shift the project from Thummadihatti to Medigadda. He cited documents from the Central Water Commission (CWC) and a letter from then-Union Minister Uma Bharati, both of which indicated lack of water availability at Thummadihatti.  He also pointed out that Maharashtra had objected to the construction of a barrage at the previously proposed height of 152 meters. Rao said the shift was a pragmatic decision made to ensure the project's completion and benefit farmers.

The former minister said the Kaleshwaram project had received approvals from 11 central government agencies and that all details were transparently documented in the Detailed Project Report (DPR). "If the report is finding something wrong, then the Central government is to blame because all approvals were given by the Centre," Harish Rao said. Rao asked if the commission would dare to blame the central government and its agencies that granted these permissions.

"A committee of five experts recommended the Medigadda location and had themselves confirmed in an affidavit to the commission that their views were considered."

Harish Rao drew a sharp contrast between the BRS and Congress governments. He claimed that administration was transformative, including providing 24-hour electricity, completing pending projects, and reviving lakes through Mission Kakatiya. Whereas, he said, the current government was in a limbo and focussing on political vendetta, alleging that they have not accomplished anything in the past two years beyond "taking commissions to Delhi".

Harish Rao asserted that "even Revanth Reddy knows Kaleshwaram project is a "boon" for the state and that is why he also spoke about bringing water from Mallannasagar to the Musi river.