Hyderabad: The Telangana Congress party, on Sunday, February 2, demanded Union minister and BJP leader Kishan Reddy’s registration alleging Telangana was ignored in the Union Budget, presented on Saturday.
Addressing a protest in Hyderabad, organized by the Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC), AICC member Kota Neelima strongly condemned the BJP government’s neglect of Telangana.
She demanded that the BJP MP Kishan Reddy should immediately resign for failing to secure funds for Telangana in the budget.
“If he cannot fight for our state’s rightful share, he has no moral right to represent Telangana. Either he must resign or not return to Hyderabad,” she said.
In response to criticism from political parties from Telangana that the Centre has given nothing to Telangana in the union budget, Union coal and mines minister G Kishan Reddy said that it was not the state budget.
Calling the budget introduced by Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman the “dream budget of the poor,” he explained the various ways it will help the state.
He said that the income tax exemption for up to Rs 12 lakh was a great relief to the middle class.
Also announcing that Telangana would get Rs 10,000 crore, as it is an urban state, he said that the state would also get funds under the AMRIT scheme.
Telangana deputy chief minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka on Saturday, February 1 said that there was nothing for the state in the Union Budget.
Vikramarka added that the Centre failed to understand the issues faced by Telangana; “It reflected a glaring lack of understanding and commitment to states’ unique challenges and developmental priorities in general, and that of Telangana in particular,” he remarked.
Following the announcement of the union budget, the Telangana chief minister A Revanth Reddy chaired a meeting with the cabinet after which, Vikramarka said, “The people of Telangana refuse to accept this step-motherly treatment any longer. The state’s contribution to national progress is undeniable, and it demands equitable treatment, not systematic exclusion. The Centre must acknowledge Telangana’s potential and grant it the resources it rightfully deserves.”
Bhatti, who also holds the finance portfolio, said the budget, with a 30.5 percent increase in centrally sponsored scheme (CSS) allocations to Rs 5,41,850 crore (as compared to 4,15,356 crore in 2024-25 (RE)), moves further away from the principles of fiscal federalism.
Despite repeated calls from states for greater autonomy and a reduction in CSS dependence, this significant increase undermines states’ fiscal autonomy and reflects a disregard for the concerns and priorities of state governments, he said.
