Hyderabad: Chief minister A Revanth Reddy on Monday fired a fresh political salvo at his Kerala counterpart Pinarayi Vijayan, accusing him of relying on “outdated data” to project Kerala’s performance and portray Telangana in poor light.In a detailed six-page letter, Revanth offered point-by-point rebuttals to Vijayan’s recent remarks and invited him for a direct, fact-based discussion in Thiruvananthapuram. The letter comes as Revanth arrived in Kerala for campaigning, with public meetings scheduled in Kovalam, Mavelikara and Pathanapuram. He asserted that the people of Kerala deserve better governance than a govt “that has held power for 10 years and has run out of new answers,” and signed off with the line “Nee Po, Mone Vijayan!” from the film Narasimham. Revanth argued that the statistics cited by Vijayan were largely drawn from the NITI Aayog SDG Index 2023-24, reflecting a period before the Congress came to power in Telangana. Such data, he said, fails to capture the state’s recent progress. Responding to claims on poverty eradication, Revanth questioned whether Kerala had actually achieved its stated goals, calling such promises often “a work in progress.” While acknowledging Kerala’s lower poverty rate, he attributed it to decades of governance and remittances, and said Telangana was narrowing the gap within a shorter timeframe. On literacy, he noted that Kerala’s achievements were rooted in historical investments dating back to princely states, while Telangana had made rapid gains despite structural disadvantages. He also challenged comparisons on infant mortality, calling parallels with the United States misleading, and highlighted Telangana’s ₹10 lakh free treatment under the Rajiv Aarogyasri scheme and improvements in institutional deliveries. Revanth said Telangana was open to learning from Kerala’s digital land record systems, but accused the LDF govt of political hypocrisy. He cited the Kerala gold smuggling case, alleging links to the chief minister’s office and questioning the pace of the investigation. He further countered claims on salary and pension delays, stating Telangana ensures timely payments. Highlighting the state’s recent performance, Revanth pointed to a 10.1% GSDP growth rate in 2024-25 and a per capita income of ₹3.79 lakh. The CM also flagged structural concerns in Kerala’s model, including brain drain, dependence on remittances and limited industrial growth.
