As TRS tries to retain power in Telangana, interim chief minister K Chandrashekar Rao's son and K T Rama Rao has said the anti-incumbency sentiment against some leaders will not affect the party's prospects in assembly poll as it will be "eclipsed" by the image of his father.
Asserting that people will cast "decisive votes" as they are aware of the TRS government's development work, Rao said the party is banking on his father and his vision to come to power again with a thumping majority of 100 seats in 119-member assembly polls.
Popularly known as KTR, 42-year-old Rao is contesting for the third time from Sircilla constituency, located 140 km from Hyderabad, in the December 7 assembly elections. He had won in 2014 assembly polls with over 53,000 votes against a Congress candidate.
In an exclusive interview to PTI, Rao said, "People realise that this is the election where KCR (as the chief minister is popularly known as) gets elected as chief minister. For that to happen, they have to vote for MLAs. Whatever anti-incumbency or dissatisfaction that could be against incumbent MLAs, that will be eclipsed by KCR."
Asked if the TRS was depending on KCR's image to retain power, Rao said, "We are banking on good governance by KCR. We are banking on pro-poor policies of TRS. We are banking on a combination of welfare and development which never been seen in any state."
On Former finance minister P Chidambaram's allegation that Telangana chief minister has failed to deliver the goods and left behind Rs 2.20 lakh crore debt on the people, Rao said, "Mr Chidambaram being a learned man should not mislead people. We donot need Chidambaram's certificate. We don't need Congress party's certificate. We need certificate from the people."
On the party's promise of offering 1 lakh government jobs, the TRS leader said, "We have filled 38,000 posts. Let me remind you, this is the highest number any government has filled in the past. The previous government has filled on an average 9,000 jobs annually."
Stating that farmers' suicides are declining rapidly in the state, Rao said, "Union Minister of State for Agriculture Purshottam Rupala has said it on record on the floor of Parliament that 1500 or 1600, subject to correction, farmers suicides have come down by 54 per cent last year to 645. We also want to see a situation in Telangana that there are zero farmers' suicides."