Jubilee Hills bypoll: Ponnam urges people to trust Congress governance, accuses BRS and BJP of spreading lies

Hyderabad: “The by-election of Jubilee Hills is a test between the Congress’ plan for development and Bharat Rashtra Samithi falsehoods,” said minister Ponnam Prabhakar, urging voters to vote for the Congress Party.

Ponnam Prabhakar, Congress leaders Charan Kaushik Yadav, Bomma Sriram Chakravarthi and others appealed to the people through the media on Wednesday.

Prabhakar said, “I urge the voters to support Congress candidate Naveen Yadav in the upcoming Jubilee Hills by-election. The minister asserted that people are endorsing the Congress government’s commitment to welfare and development.”

‘Development vs Falsehoods’

Prabhakar said that the Jubilee Hills by-election is not a contest between two individuals but a choice between Congress’s development agenda and the BRS’s falsehoods.

He emphasised that only the ruling Congress party can ensure development in Jubilee Hills, contrasting it with the BRS, which is not in power either at the State or the Centre. He used an analogy, advising voters to ‘board a moving vehicle’ (Congress) rather than a ‘car parked in a corner’ (BRS).

The minister highlighted Congress’s past contributions to the constituency, including providing house plots and homes to the poor.

Minister discusses Congress report card

He cited the State government’s recent achievements, such as permitting the construction of Indiramma houses in Hyderabad, providing free bus travel for women, distributing new ration cards (a continuous process), supplying fine-variety rice (6 kg per person) to over 2.40 lakh people in Jubilee Hills, offering 200 units of free electricity, providing gas cylinders at Rs 500 and granting zero-interest loans to women’s self-help groups.

Prabhakar confirmed the government has filled over 80,000 jobs and is committed to fulfilling the promise of a Rs 12,000 allowance for auto drivers, attributing the delay to the previous government’s ‘financial destruction.’

He also spoke about the Congress government’s recent initiative to issue permits for 20,000 electric autos, 10,000 CNG and 10,000 LPG autos to create new employment opportunities, a sharp contrast to the previous BRS government’s alleged failure to issue new auto permits after 2012, he said.

Congress is handling major projects

The minister challenged the BRS to present its development record over the past 10 years and questioned the previous government’s lack of effort in bringing even ‘a drop of water’ to Hyderabad, while the Congress government has already initiated work to bring an additional 10 TMC of water under Godavari Phase 2.

He credited previous Congress governments with bringing major projects like Krishna Phase 1, 2 and 3, Manjeera, Godavari water, massive industries, the Outer Ring Road, the airport and Central institutions to the region.

Prabhakar strongly condemned the BRS for opposing the free bus travel scheme for women and called upon all women to reject the BRS’s stance.

Political attacks and appeals

Prabhakar lashed out at the opposition parties and defended the Congress candidate:

He accused the BRS and BJP of engaging in ‘diversion politics’ by discussing vote theft—an issue he claimed was initially raised by Rahul Gandhi.

He defended the Congress candidate, Naveen Yadav, a BC leader and educated individual, who is constantly among the people, against the opposition’s attempts to label him a ‘rowdy.’

The minister also questioned the role of Union Minister Kishan Reddy, asking what he had done for the Jubilee Hills constituency in the last 10 years and challenging the BRS and BJP to a debate on development at Yousufguda. He alleged a ‘dosti in Delhi, kushti in the streets’ dynamic between the BRS and BJP.

He expressed gratitude to Chief Minister Revanth Reddy for issuing directives to fulfil previous promises to the cinema industry workers, including increasing cinema ticket prices with 20 per cent dedicated to workers and their families.

Cadre of BJP and BRS joins Congress

Around 50 leaders from the Telangana BJP and BRS joined the Congress party at the Gandhi Bhawan on Wednesday.