The Congress government’s decision to install a statue of former Prime Minister, late Rajiv Gandhi, in front of Telangana secretariat has set off a heated exchange between Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy and former minister KT Rama Rao.

Mr Reddy has said that a statue of Mr Gandhi would soon be installed on the secretariat premises. A statue of ‘Telangana Thalli’ – the state’s mother goddess – will also be installed at the secretariat, he has said.

Mr Rao, popularly known as KTR, has said the spot chosen by the Congress government for Rajiv Gandhi’s statue had been earmarked for Telangana Thalli’s statue.

“Mark my words Cheap Minister Revanth. We will clear out the trash from the surroundings of Dr BR Ambedkar secretariat the very same day we are back in office,” KTR said in a post on X.

Mark my words Cheap Minister Revanth

We will clear out the trash from the surroundings of Dr. B. R. Ambedkar secretariat the very same day we are back in office

Can’t expect a Delhi Ghulam like you to ever understand self-respect & pride of Telangana

Using filthy language in…

— KTR (@KTRBRS) August 20, 2024

The former minister said it was turning the tenure of former Chief Minister and his father KCR that the Telangana secretariat was rebuilt into a magnificent structure. He called the Congress party “anti-Telangana” for deciding to place Rajiv Gandhi’s statue in the spot reserved for Telangana Thalli. He said the BRS government, during its 10-year term, never thought about changing names of schemes or places named after Congress leaders.

“In four years, a BRS government will be formed under KCR. As soon as that happens, we will remove the statue of Rajiv Gandhi with due respect and move it wherever Congress wants, and reinstall Telangana Thalli’s statue,” KTR said.

In a sharp response, the Chief Minister dared BRS leaders to touch Rajiv Gandhi’s statue. “When we are proposing to install the statue of Rajiv Gandhi, who sacrificed his life for the country, they are saying that they will remove it. Despite losing power, their arrogance remains. Our party activists will take the responsibility of crushing this arrogance.”

“If anyone touches the statue of Rajiv Gandhi, hell will break loose. He (KTR) is day-dreaming that BRS will return to power,” the Chief Minister said at an event, asking if the former minister wants his father’s statue to be installed. He also referred to the former Chief Minister as a “drunk”.

Calling the Chief Minister a “Delhi Ghulam”, KTR has said he cannot he expected to understand the self-respect and pride of Telangana.

“Using filthy language in front of school children shows your lousy thinking and uncouth upbringing. Wish you speedy healing from your mental sickness,” he retorted. KTR has said that if the Chief Minister wants to impress the Congress high command, he should get Rajiv Gandhi’s statue installed at Gandhi Bhavan, the state Congress headquarters, or the Chief Minister’s residence.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to visit Poland today, marking the first visit by an Indian Prime Minister to the country in 45 years. The visit coincides with the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between India and Poland.

The last Indian Prime Minister to visit Poland was Morarji Desai in 1979. 

“Leaving for Warsaw. This visit to Poland comes at a special time- when we are marking 70 years of diplomatic ties between our nations. India cherishes the deep-rooted friendship with Poland. This is further cemented by a commitment to democracy and pluralism,” PM Modi said in a statement. 

Leaving for Warsaw. This visit to Poland comes at a special time- when we are marking 70 years of diplomatic ties between our nations. India cherishes the deep rooted friendship with Poland. This is further cemented by a commitment to democracy and pluralism.

I will hold talks…

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) August 21, 2024

“I will hold talks with President @AndrzejDuda and PM @donaldtusk. I will also be addressing the Indian community at a programme in Warsaw this evening,” he added. 

The Prime Minister’s two-day visit from August 21-22 will focus on strengthening bilateral relations, with discussions likely to cover a wide range of topics, including strategic partnerships, defence cooperation, and cultural exchanges.

European Parliament member Dariusz Jonski has termed the visit as “very important.” 

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) highlighted the historical ties between the two nations, recalling Poland’s assistance to India during Operation Ganga in 2022, which facilitated the evacuation of over 4,000 Indian students from Ukraine. This gesture, along with the historical refuge provided to over 6,000 Polish women and children in India during World War II, are being seen as the cornerstone of good India-Poland ties. 

PM Modi will visit the Ukrainian capital Kyiv on August 23 to hold talks with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Badlapur rail roko, chaos: The police delay in filing the FIR – there were claims that the two four-year-old girls’ parents were made to wait for around 11 hours – led to fears of an attempt at covering up the incident, thus causing the outrage