Congress: KCR turned BRS into family-owned business, family fighting for hold over benami assets

Hyderabad: The Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) is no longer a political party but a crumbling empire torn apart by greed and dynastic ambition, said Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) spokesperson Syed Nizamuddin on Monday.

He alleged that the ongoing alleged feud between KT Rama Rao, K Kavitha, T Harish Rao and Santosh Rao is not rooted in ideology or public service, but in a desperate bid to seize control of over Rs 2,000 crore in party assets—declared and undisclosed.

Addressing a press conference at Gandhi Bhavan, Nizamuddin presented year-wise financial data, donor records and recent political developments to argue that the KCR family turned BRS into a ‘family-owned business’, using State power over 10 years to amass massive wealth.

‘BRS assets went up drastically when it was in power’

He claimed that while the party declared assets worth Rs 1,191 crore in 2022-23, the actual wealth— if one includes benami holdings, shell companies, and illegal income—would easily cross Rs 2,000 crore.

“From a regional party that had just Rs 5 crore in assets in 2011-12, BRS exploded into a financial powerhouse under KCR’s rule. In just a decade, their assets shot up to Rs 1,191 crore. And that’s just what they declared,” Nizamuddin said, holding up the Election Commission filings.

He gave a year-wise breakdown: Rs 14.49 crore in 2016–17, Rs 188.73 crore in 2018–19, Rs 301.47 crore in 2019–20, Rs 512.23 crore in 2021–22, and Rs 1,191.41 crore in 2022–23. “Such exponential growth in political assets is not possible without a deeply entrenched system of corruption,” he said.

Political donations for BRS

Nizamuddin further highlighted the party’s soaring income and questionable donations.

“In 2022–23 alone, BRS earned Rs 738 crore - more than triple the previous year. It also received Rs 154 crore in donations from just 47 donors, with each averaging over Rs 3 crore. These weren’t well-wishers. These were businessmen with contracts, land deals, and policy favours during BRS rule,” he alleged.

He added that the party’s expenditure, which matched its income rupee-for-rupee, reflected a laundering-style operation rather than transparent political functioning.

“No party in opposition spends Rs 738 crore unless it is safeguarding an empire,” he said.

Congress alleges rift in KCR family

Moving beyond the balance sheet, Nizamuddin pointed to the open power struggle now dividing the KCR family. “This is not about Telangana’s people. This is about who gets to control the benami assets, the funding network, the contractors’ cartel and the political machinery they built,” he said.

He cited the silence of KCR, the sudden political re-entry of Harish Rao, the aggressive posturing by KTR, and the visible frustration of K Kavitha as signs of deepening internal rifts. “Every press meet, every farmhouse meeting is not about strategy - it’s about succession,” he claimed.

Kavitha’s alleged letter

He also referred to the now-viral six-page handwritten letter that K Kavitha reportedly wrote to her father, KCR. “Kavitha described KCR as ‘like god’ but surrounded by ‘demons’. She expressed concern over the BJP-friendly tilt of the leadership and the influence of certain individuals who have hijacked the party,” Nizamuddin said. “That letter wasn’t personal. It was political - and it was explosive.”

The leak of that letter was followed by a private meeting between KTR and KCR at the latter’s Erravelli farmhouse. “They’re in damage control mode. This is a corporate succession war playing out in public,” Nizamuddin observed.

‘BRS leadership is afraid of public scrutiny’

He warned that the BRS leadership is afraid of full public scrutiny because many of its top donors were the same firms that received massive benefits during their regime. “This is a classic quid pro quo. Political power was traded for private gain,” he said.

The Congress, he said, is demanding a full, court-monitored probe into BRS’s financial empire - covering electoral bonds, donations, land allotments, shell firms, and personal assets of family members. “The people of Telangana deserve to know how one family used a public movement for private profiteering,” he asserted.

Nizamuddin said that the Congress is focused on rebuilding Telangana through transparency, public welfare, and people-first governance. “The KCR family’s internal collapse is proof that the Telangana movement was hijacked and converted into a private venture. And now, that venture is breaking down over inheritance,” he said.

Calling on citizens to reject dynastic politics, he added, “The BRS was never a people’s movement. It’s a political cartel obsessed with money, power, and property. The time has come to shut down this business and bring back clean, accountable governance.”