KCR’s TV9 interview: Denies phone tapping, to repair Medigadda, sure of becoming CM again, Kavitha will come out clean

HYDERABAD: After a gap of almost 14 years, former Chief Minister and Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) supremo K Chandrashekar Rao (KCR) spoke elaborately on various subjects in a TV interview. On Tuesday, he gave a four-hour-long sensational yet highly informative interview to TV9 (Chief Editor Rajinakanth’s live show with KCR).

Answering a question on his role in the sensational phone-tapping issue, KCR denied having any knowledge of the tapping of phones for political ends and said that it could be one of the routine intelligence-gathering techniques used by the state and national intelligence units.

“Vigilance is part of Government duties. There are intelligence departments that report to the Home Minister and Home Secretary. Even Revanth Reddy receives his morning briefing from intelligence agencies. The Congress Government is trying to make the routine intelligence gathering and updation of the technology and gadgets into a political gimmick,” KCR said.

KCR said that the Congress Government earned so much of a bad name in the past five months that if elections were conducted now, the BRS would win and form the Government with its hands down. “Whenever the election comes BRS will again and form Government. KCR will become CM and I will give the first interview to TV9,” he said.

Predicting that the BJP was trying to usurp power in Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, and then Telangana, KCR said that the saffron party won't let Congress survive too long. “I wish that Revanth Reddy works well and dignified. But if he continues this kind of sloppy governance the image of BRS will improve as people would compare us with Congress every day,” he observed.

Denying any chance of changing the name of BRS back to TRS to reflect its roots, the BRS president said that the ECI won't let that change occur within five years. “I believe that the symbols and names don’t make a big difference,” he said adding that he contested on different symbols but people elected him every time. Replying to a question on BRS’s national political ambitions, he said that despite the debacle in Assembly elections, the wish to play an important role in national politics remained intact.

While expressing no interest in the politics of Andhra Pradesh, KCR said that he received information that YS Jagan Mohan Reddy would be winning the elections in that sibling State.

Trashing all the allegations made by the Congress Government on the multi-stage KLIP and damage to Medigadda Barrage, KCR said that if the Government refused to take up repairs he would gather 50,000 farmers and would take up repairs of the project with the donations collected from farmers.

“I am not an engineer, I did not design the project. If you ask me why Revanth is vengeful about me, I think that the note for vote episode where he was caught red-handed trying to bribe our MLA Stephenson still haunts him,” he said.

Coming heavily on the Narendra Modi Government for targeting his daughter and BRS MLC K Kavitha in the Delhi Liquor Scam case, he said that there was no case at all and the intelligence agencies were trying to trouble Delhi CM Kejriwal and Kavitha even without finding evidence on the money trail. “She will come out clean very soon,” he said confidently.

“ It is Narendra Modi’s political scheme. Kavitha doesn't know anything. In the past ten years, 700 MPs or MLAs were taken by Narendra Modi’s regime. He tried me, but we caught them and threw them in Jail. BJP can't face Kejriwal in Delhi, hence they are trying to intimidate AAP through fake cases,” KCR noted.

Explaining reasons why the BRS lost the Assembly elections, he said that people were cheated by the false promises of the Congress. “The urban electorate stayed with us the rural masses believed that additional benefits would occur. Only 1.8 percent of people shifted base. But we are not routed out, we will return like a phoenix,” KCR said signing off.