For the second time in less than four months, Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao will avoid greeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi when he arrives in Hyderabad on Thursday, May 26, to attend the celebration of the completion of 20 years of Indian School of Business (ISB) Hyderabad. As part of his nationwide tour, KCR is scheduled to be in Bengaluru on Thursday to meet former Prime Minister and Janata Dal (S) leader HD Deve Gowda. KCR had just returned to Hyderabad on May 23 from Delhi after a four-day visit to the national capital and Chandigarh.
As per the schedule already announced, KCR will reach Bengaluru on May 26. He will call on former Prime Minister Deve Gowda and former Karnataka Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy. The next day, he will leave for Ralegan Siddhi where he will meet social activist Anna Hazare. From there, he will go to Shirdi for Sai Baba's darshan and will then return to Hyderabad.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is visiting Hyderabad on May 26, to participate in the celebration of the completion of 20 years of ISB Hyderabad. He will attend the event around 2 pm and will address the graduation ceremony of the Post Graduate Programme (PGP) Class of 2022. The ISB had also invited CM KCR for the event. The dean said the Chief Minister conveyed his best wishes and also informed him that he would not be able to attend the event in view of his scheduled visit to another state.
KCR had not received Modi on his arrival in Hyderabad on February 5 and also skipped the two programmes attended by the Prime Minister. During the day-long visit, the Prime Minister had unveiled the statue of saint Ramanujacharya and inaugurated the 50th anniversary celebrations of ICRISAT. KCR had come under sharp criticism from BJP, which alleged that KCR insulted the Prime Minister.
KCR's action was viewed in political circles as a symbolic protest against the Narendra Modi government's discrimination against Telangana. The PM's visit had also come in the wake of a bitter attack by the TRS chief on BJP for its failure on many fronts and for whipping up communal passions in various parts of the country for political mileage. However, the Chief Minister had later clarified that he did not receive Modi as a couple of his family members had COVID-19-like symptoms.
This time too, Modi is visiting Hyderabad at a time when KCR has stepped up his efforts to work for a national alternative. He has been holding consultations with leaders of various political parties. The state leadership of the BJP has slammed KCR for once again avoiding a meeting with the Prime Minister. State BJP chief Bandi Sanjay Kumar alleged that the TRS chief is running away from the state to avoid facing Modi. He said KCR deliberately planned his visit to other states as he was scared of facing the Prime Minister.
The Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) chief had called on Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Arvind Kejriwal, and former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister and Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav during his recent visit to Delhi. He along with Kejriwal also travelled to Chandigarh and they were joined by Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann for a programme on May 22, where KCR handed over cheques of Rs 3 lakh each to families of farmers who died during the movement against the three farm laws brought by the Union government. He presented cheques of Rs 10 lakh each to the families of four Army personnel from Punjab who were martyred during clashes with Chinese troops in Galwan Valley.