Hyderabad: Telangana Jagruti President and former MP Kalvakuntla Kavitha on Tuesday demanded action against an illegal Musi River venture and staged a protest at Narsingi over alleged encroachment on the riverbed.
With local residents and party leaders beside her, she questioned what she called selective demolition drives by the State government. She asked whether authorities removing houses of the poor under the Gandhi Sarovar project were ignoring a multi-storey structure rising on the Musi River.
Kavitha targeted the HYDRAA demolition wing and asked if its Commissioner Ranganath knew about the construction. “If we call him, he says he is in a collectors’ conference. We will stay here until bulldozers arrive to act against this venture,” she said.
Illegal Musi River venture draws sharp protest
She alleged that officials demolished houses in Quthbullapur and razed nearly 600 homes in Velugumattla of Khammam district. However, she claimed authorities spared influential builders linked to the illegal Musi River venture.
During the ‘Janam Baata’ programme, she said, people submitted several complaints about constructions on lake and river banks. Yet, she alleged, the government took no action.
Referring to the Gandhi Sarovar project, Kavitha said officials harassed residents of Madhu Ridge Apartments despite the buildings being nearly two decades old. She argued that middle-class families who invested life savings now faced pressure, while construction that allegedly harmed the Musi River continued.
Kavitha said her protest opposed the government’s double standards rather than private individuals. She alleged that the previous BRS regime granted initial permissions, the Congress government paused the project for six months, and later allowed work to resume.
She accused the Congress government of letting the construction continue after taking bribes. “Our fight is for equal justice. We will protect the Musi River and Telangana’s resources at any cost,” she asserted.