YS Sharmila, sister of Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Reddy and YSR Telangana Party President, called on Karnataka Congress President and Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar at his residence in Bengaluru on Monday, May 29. DK Shivakumar's office said it was just a cordial meeting between the two leaders and did not divulge any further details. Shivakumar is a close family friend of Sharmila since the days of late Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YSR Rajasekhara Reddy.
IANS sources said that Sharmila is keen on forging an alliance with the Congress party in Telangana state and that she spoke to Shivakumar in this regard. Congress is also looking forward to unite anti-Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) votes ahead of the Telangana Assembly elections scheduled later this year.
Earlier on Sunday, Sharmila once again launched a scathing attack on Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, dubbing him as "President of Taliban". Alleging that there is no democracy in Telangana, she remarked that there is Taliban rule in the state. "KCR is not the chief minister but president of Taliban," tweeted Sharmila.
Sharmila slammed KCR for what she called his double standards on various issues. On the Chief Minister pledging support to the fight for the rights of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government Delhi, she asked why he was silent on the problems of Telangana. Sharmila's attack came a day after Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's visit to Hyderabad to meet KCR. The Telangana Chief Minister assured his full support to the Delhi government in the fight against an ordinance brought by the Union government to nullify a recent order of the Supreme Court giving Delhi government the rights in matters related to appointment and transfers of bureaucrats in the national capital.
"Did you ever fight for state's rights? Did you ever raise your voice in the Parliament to protest the state's interests?" the YSRTP leader asked KCR. Alleging that there is anarchy in the state and those questioning the misdeeds of the government are being booked, arrested and jailed, she demanded that President's rule be imposed in Telangana. The YSRTP leader voiced her apprehension that the elections in Telangana can't be held in a free and fair manner under the current dispensation.