Harish Rao Questions Revanth Reddy on Singareni Workers’ Plight, Messi’s Match Sponsorship

Former Minister and BRS leader Harish Rao on Saturday strongly criticized the Congress government for failing to address the problems of Singareni workers and for not fulfilling its promises on hereditary employment . After submitting a memorandum to Singareni Collieries Company Limited (SCCL) CMD and Director Gautam , Rao told reporters that the government was compromising workers’ livelihood security while indulging in what he described as political theatrics .

Rao alleged that the government did not have sufficient funds to pay salaries to Singareni workers but had spent ₹10 crore of public money on a football show. “Using funds earned by hardworking workers for such events reflects misplaced priorities,” he said, targeting Chief Minister Revanth Reddy .

He further accused the Congress government of failing to implement assurances on providing hereditary jobs to Singareni workers, stating that many families were being pushed into distress due to the lack of response from the administration. Former ministers Kopula Eshwar , along with TBBJKSS leaders , accompanied Harish Rao in submitting the memorandum to the Singareni management.

Questioning the government’s priorities further, Harish Rao alleged that while Singareni workers’ issues remained unresolved, the Telangana government had agreed in principle to directly finance the Hyderabad leg of a proposed international football event involving Lionel Messi. He claimed that nearly ₹70 crore of public funds were proposed to be spent, allegedly involving diversion of funds from Singareni, Tourism, and Sports departments, along with additional expenditure on security and travel arrangements for Messi’s entourage. Such spending, he said, showed a disregard for workers struggling for salaries and job security.

On another front, Harish Rao condemned the illegal arrests of journalists , stating that a government claiming to uphold the “seventh guarantee of democracy” was instead suppressing dissent with an iron hand . He questioned whether journalists still had the right to protest or submit petitions under the present regime.

Rao recalled that during the tenure of former Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao , around 26,000 accreditation cards were issued to journalists without discrimination between reporting and desk staff , ensuring dignity to the profession. He criticized the current government for reducing the number of accreditation cards to 10,000 and for allegedly comparing social media and YouTube journalists to terrorists, calling such remarks unacceptable.

Assuring full support to journalists, Harish Rao said the BRS party would stand firmly with their struggle. “These issues will be raised in the upcoming Assembly session . The fight for Singareni workers’ and journalists’ rights will continue. If democracy is crushed with an iron fist, the public will respond,” he warned.