VIKARABAD (Ranga Reddy district): Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy has expressed confidence about the performance of the Congress in the forthcoming byelections claiming that the “overwhelming” response from the people indicated their faith in the government that was delivering the goods.

Accompanied by the Pradesh Congress Committee chief D. Srinivas and AICC secretary Iqbal Singh, the Chief Minister formally launched the party’s campaign on Thursday from Chevella, in line with his “sentiment” of launching major programmes from there.

Dr. Reddy who addressed a public meeting at Chevella and conducted road shows at Manneguda and Vikarabad town sought to play up the “development plank” by asking people whether any government had come to them for giving benefits like ration cards and houses in the past.

Though he made a couple of references to the Telugu Desam describing it as a party that cheated people by diluting Rs. 2-a-kilo rice scheme and other promises, remarks about the Telangana Rashtra Samiti or the reasons that led to the bypoll were conspicuously absent in his speeches.

Mr. Srinivas and Mr. Iqbal Singh too did not make any references about the TRS. The major thrust of the speeches was the government’s commitment to shortly launch work on Pranahita-Chevella project, the 600m lift irrigation project with an estimated Rs. 18,000 crore that would be a permanent solution to drinking and irrigation water woes of the Ranga Reddy district.

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