Hyderabad:17 Dec (Patriotic Views) BRS MLCs protested against the state government by attending the Legislative Council session in black attire to express solidarity with the farmers of Lagcherla.

BRS MLC Kalvakuntla Kavitha, targeting the government, demanded the immediate release of the Lagcherla farmers from jail and urged the state government to apologize to them.

Tough Questions on the Musi River Issue

Kalvakuntla Kavitha criticized the government’s handling of the Musi River project. She revealed that the government sought a loan of ₹4,100 crores from the World Bank while claiming that the Detailed Project Report (DPR) was not yet prepared. She questioned:

1. Clarification Required: On what basis did the government approach the World Bank for funding?
2. Clarification on Central Requests: Recently, Chief Minister Revanth Reddy requested ₹14,100 crores from the Centre. If requests were made to both the Centre and the World Bank, why is the Assembly and the public being misled?

Kavitha warned that if the government continued to mislead the Assembly, a Privilege Motion would be introduced.

Voice for Musi River Evictees

Highlighting the plight of the Musi River evictees, Kavitha countered the government’s claim that 309 families vacated their homes willingly. She challenged the government to present any signed documents in the Assembly as proof.

She stated:

• The government’s claim that 181 families demolished their houses voluntarily is laughable.
• The Musi evictees’ situation must be addressed on humanitarian grounds.
• The government should pay EMIs for the destroyed houses.

Sharp Criticism of State Government

Kalvakuntla Kavitha lambasted the Revanth Reddy-led government, saying:

• BRS will not remain silent if the Musi River residents suffer losses.
• Bulldozing homes without remorse is a grave injustice.
• Under this project, 7,000 houses are being destroyed, a step KCR’s government never took.

Assembly Atmosphere and Protest

BRS MLCs staged a protest inside the Legislative Council by holding placards and raising slogans. They demanded:

• Immediate release of the Lagcherla farmers.
• Justice for the Musi River project-affected families.

The Assembly session saw heavy deployment of marshals, intensifying the charged atmosphere.

BRS Stand

Kalvakuntla Kavitha clarified that the BRS party is not against the Musi River cleansing project. However, the government’s current approach is displacing thousands of families, which is unacceptable.

She urged the state government to compensate the Musi River evictees adequately and release the Lagcherla farmers immediately.