TRS government has weakened Hyderabad's brand image: S Jaipal Reddy

The TRS government in Telangana has weakened the brand image of Hyderabad during its first 100 days in office, former Union Minister S Jaipal Reddy alleged in Hyderabad on Friday.

"After 100 days, Chief Minister KCR (K Chandrasekhar Rao) himself agrees that he could not do anything in 100 days. But the brand of Hyderabad seems to have weakened. Hyderabad has been a cosmopolitan brand since the times of Nizam.

"Not only Telugu-speaking people, but those speaking Marathi and Kannada, Marwari friends and Gujarati brethren have been living here since then. TRS has weakened this brand," he told reporters.

Reddy, a senior Congress leader from Telangana, said the TRS government should not do any "negative things", but try to implement the promises the ruling party had made to the people.

"The most important thing in democracy is press freedom. In 100 days, they did things like threatening media and closing some channels. Telangana is formed as a new state. It is defamed. We only urge KCR not to do such negative things and try to fulfil the promises made (to people)," he said.

Reddy claimed that TRS won elections in Telangana by making "false" promises like providing 12 per cent reservation for minorities though people of the state felt that separate state became a reality because of Congress President Sonia Gandhi.

Hitting out at the Narendra Modi government, Reddy alleged that the BJP had promised to bring back black money stashed away abroad by Indians, but Union Ministers are speaking in different voices about the matter now.