‘Simon Go Back’ then, ‘Sir Go Back’ in coming days, says Revanth

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Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy drew a parallel between the 1928 anti-Simon Commission agitation and the ongoing controversy over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, saying a similar nationwide movement could emerge against the exercise in the coming days.

Addressing a conclave in New Delhi on the theme ‘India’s Next Chapter’, Mr. Revanth said, “Just as the country united under the slogan ‘Simon Go Back’, it will unite under the slogan ‘Sir Go Back’ in the coming days,” adding that leaders, including Mamata Banerjee, Sharad Pawar, Uddhav Thackeray and M.K. Stalin could come together on the issue.

The Chief Minister alleged that decisions relating to electoral rolls were being centralised with the Election Commission and claimed that artificial intelligence was being used in the process.

Mr. Revanth Reddy also accused the Union government of not extending the same cooperation to Telangana that, he said, Prime Minister Narendra Modi received from the then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh when Mr. Modi was Gujarat Chief Minister.

He alleged that files relating to the Regional Ring Road, metro rail expansion and other projects were pending with the Centre. He also alleged that investment opportunities, including a semiconductor project, were being shifted towards Gujarat.

“This is not a north-versus-south issue; it is becoming Gujarat versus the rest of the country,” he said.

On delimitation, Mr. Revanth argued that southern States could lose political representation if Lok Sabha seats were redistributed primarily on the basis of population. He also criticised what he described as the concentration of key Union Government portfolios in northern States and argued that southern States needed adequate political representation.

On welfare schemes, Mr. Revanth Reddy defended the Congress government’s guarantees in Telangana, saying political parties could not ignore welfare when competing with one another. At the same time, he said governments needed to balance welfare expenditure with funds required for development.

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