'Telangana Has Its Own OG KCR': KTR Hits Back At Pawan Kalyan Over Regionalism Remarks
KTR said nobody prevented Pawan Kalyan's Jana Sena Party from entering Telangana politics and alleged that it was the people who rejected the party electorally.
Published : June 3, 2026 at 4:30 PM IST
Hyderabad: A war of words has erupted between the main opposition Bharat Rashtra Samiti (BRS) and Jana Sena Party (JSP) after K T Rama Rao, working president of BRS, countered remarks made by Andhra Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister and JSP chief Pawan Kalyan on regionalism and Telangana politics.
Responding to Pawan Kalyan's comments that ''regionalism is more dangerous than terrorism'', KTR asserted that Telangana was built on a democratic movement rooted in self-respect and sacrifice.
"Telangana has its own OG - KCR," KTR remarked, referring to former Chief Minister and BRS president K Chandrashekar Rao, while emphasising that Telangana had leaders capable of protecting the state's interests.
KTR said nobody prevented Jana Sena from entering Telangana politics and alleged that it was the people who rejected the party electorally. He pointed out that Jana Sena had contested the 2023 Telangana Assembly elections as well as municipal polls but failed to make an impact.
"Nobody stopped Pawan Kalyan in Telangana. It was the people who stopped Jana Sena from winning," KTR said while addressing the media.
Recalling Pawan Kalyan's earlier remarks during the Telangana statehood movement, KTR said the JSP chief had once claimed that he "did not rice for 11 days" after Telangana was formed. Questioning the contradictions, KTR asked why Pawan later chose to hold meetings in the state if he was also opposed to bifurcation.
The BRS leader also took strong exception to Pawan Kalyan's criticism of regional identity politics. Drawing parallels with the Andhra Pradesh statehood movement, KTR asked whether leaders would now question the sacrifice of Potti Sriramulu, who fasted to death demanding a separate Andhra state.
"Potti Sriramulu sacrificed his life for a separate Andhra Pradesh. Will that now be termed dangerous regionalism?" he asked.
KTR reminded that Telangana's identity movement was neither anti-national nor divisive, but a constitutional and democratic struggle for justice, resources, and self-governance and added that BRS respected Pawan Kalyan both as an actor and as the Deputy Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh.
"Telangana's political future would be shaped by leaders who fought for the statehood movement," KTR said.
The BRS leader alleged that attempts had been made during the bifurcation period to weaken Telangana by proposing Hyderabad as a Union Territory and by re-allocating projects without the state's consent. He referred to the merger of seven mandals of Khammam district with Andhra Pradesh and issues surrounding the Sileru project.
KTR also accused the Congress party and BJP of functioning together in Telangana and referred to earlier Enforcement Directorate (ED) raids on properties linked to Telangana Revenue Minister Ponguleti Srinivasa Reddy and questioned why no further action had followed.
KTR, while concluding, questioned why Prime Minister Narendra Modi has not acted against Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy despite alleging that 'RR tax (Revanth-Rahul (Gandhi)' commissions are being collected in the state.
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