Hyderabad, September 22: The sudden announcement made by Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy on Rs 1 a kg rice scheme has not excited anybody, but it definitely generated debate among the political and media circles.
One wonders why Kiran had made this announcement of one of the most populist schemes at this stage, which are generally announced before the general elections.
At present, there are no elections in the state and one does not think Kiran would have announced the scheme only for the sake of Banswada assembly by-elections.
A section of the political observers argue that Kiran might have made the announcement to divert the attention of the people from the ongoing Telangana agitation, but it does not seem to have any effect on the movement.
Even the media has not taken the announcement of Rs 1 kg rice scheme so seriously. Much to the disappointment of the Chief Minister, the dailies have just pushed the story into the inside pages.
So, why did Kiran announced the scheme now?
According to sources, Kiran might have realized that he might not continue in the hot seat beyond November. The Congress high command might replace him with another suitable leader, or go in for President’s Rule in the event of the Telangana agitation intensifying in the coming days and turning violent.
So, the Chief Minister wants to get some positive points before leaving the post; or he might even be thinking of creating an embarrassing situation to his successor by introducing such a non-implementable scheme.
—Agencies