BJP taking inspiration from Kim Jong Un: Revanth Reddy on Meenakshi Natarajan row

Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy on Friday said the BJP was taking inspiration from North Korea’s ‘dictator’ Kim Jong Un by imposing a single-party state with no political opposition, amid the controversy over the rejection of Congress leader Meenakshi Natarajan’s Rajya Sabha nomination from Madhya Pradesh.

“The BJP is increasingly adopting the route of Kim Jong Un by stifling electoral democracy. When they were unsuccessful at ‘vote-chori’ (stealing of votes), they have resorted to ‘seat-chori’ (stealing of seat). The rejection of Meenakshi Natarajan’s Rajya Sabha nomination is very unfortunate and a black day for democracy,” he told reporters in the national capital.

The chief minister also called the returning officer a “stooge of the BJP”, adding that poll officials are increasingly acting like “BJP karyakartas (workers)”.

“It is not a hidden fact that the saffron party is anti-democracy, anti-women and anti-Gandhian philosophy. The BJP’s fielding of a third candidate (in the Rajya Sabha polls) was against the constitution,” he asserted.

Natarajan’s nomination was rejected by the Election Commission following complaints that she had not disclosed the details of a case against her in her nomination papers. The case in question is said to have been filed against the Congress leader in Telangana. The rejection came on the complaint by senior BJP leader and Madhya Pradesh minister, Kailash Vijayvargiya.

The case against Natarajan, who is also the Congress Telangana in-charge, involves a private complaint by a former corporate executive A Srilatha. The complaint, first filed in 2022, was regarding the conduct of a state Congress leader Kumbham Shivakumar Reddy. Srilatha had claimed that certain political leaders provided political patronage or failed to act despite being informed of her allegations.

Chief Minister Reddy said as per the provisions of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS), Natarajan and others were not accused but respondents as the court had not taken cognisance of the matter. The case is in a preliminary stage awaiting hearing.

“So, there is no case, no FIR, or sabotaging efforts. The rejection of Natarajan’s nomination is purely political,” he underlined.

Asked about Telangana’s participation at Thursday’s NITI Aayog meeting in Delhi, the Congress leader said he put forth the demands of formation of industrial clusters, Metro Rail expansion, airport at Warangal, formation of an IIM (Indian Institute of Management), better road connectivity and resolving water issues related to his state.

He also accused Union minister Kishan Reddy of jeopardizing the growth trail of Telangana.

“Tell me one instance when the minister has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and demanded better infrastructure for the state he belongs to. He is occupying a position in the Union cabinet, yet he has done nothing meaningful for Telangana,” Reddy claimed.