Hyderabad, (Telangana) [India], October 9 : Telangana Police have placed Bharat Rashtra Samithi, BRS party's Working President KT Rama Rao under house arrest on Thursday at his residence amidst heavy police deployment.
In a tweet on X, KT Rao said, "All I wanted to do is board an RTC bus peacefully, travel to RTC MD office & submit a letter demanding roll back of steep hike in Bus ticket fares Look at the number of police officers deployed right now outside my housing complex!! All to prevent one person from boarding a Bus ?! Wish the police show the same level of enthusiasm about controlling the crime rate that is spiralling in Hyderabad."
BRS also claimed that the Police have also placed party leader T. Harish Rao under house arrest at his residence in Kokapet, amid heavy police deployment.
This house arrest comes ahead of the "Bus Bhavan" program, where BRS planned to protest against the recent increase in RTC bus fares.
Amid BRS Party's call for "Chalo Bus Bhavan protest" to oppose the bus fare hike, heavy police deployed at the Bus Bhavan in Hyderabad.
Earlier, The Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (TGSRTC) had increased the minimum city bus fare by Rs 10 with effect from October 6. Passengers travelling by City Ordinary, Metro Express, E-Ordinary, and E-Express services will pay an additional Rs 5 for the first three stages and Rs 10 from the fourth stage onwards.
Meanwhile, BRS Working President KT Rama Rao on Tuesday slammed the Revanth Reddy-led government in Telangana after the minimum bus fare was hiked by Rs 10.
Taking a jibe at the Mahalaxmi Scheme, which provides free bus tickets to women, KT Rama Rao said that the Congress wants to garner votes in the present without considering the future.
He said that ultimately, the household expenditure will increase with the move to raise bus fares. The BRS leader told ANI, "Wherever it is a Congress Government, there is a strange atmosphere there. They do not think of the future. They just want votes in the present. So, they launch new schemes.
They call it free for women, but the men have to pay twice the charge; bus pass charges for children are also increased. So, ultimately, the cost to a household increases.
"He added that the party will continue to oppose the bus fare hike till the Telangana government rolls it back. "The Congress Government makes promises mindlessly for votes and then fails to fulfil them later. Bus ticket prices have been hiked by Rs 10 in Hyderabad. The party will take this matter seriously and continue to protest until the Government rolls this back," he said.
BRS MLAs D. Sudheer Reddy, Kaleru Venkatesh, and Mutha Gopal demanded that the recently hiked RTC bus fares be rolled back immediately.
To witness the impact of the fare hike first-hand, the MLAs boarded an RTC bus from Nampally Exhibition Grounds to the Telangana Legislative Assembly, travelling alongside regular passengers.
Telangana BJP State President Ramchander Rao also criticised the decision, saying that the fare hike is atrocious and unwanted and urged the government to withdraw it in favour of the common man.
"This is a very atrocious decision on the common man...The bus fare hike is unwanted, and the government should withdraw it...Bharatiya Janata Party condemns this type of taxing on the common man, and this is an anti-people decision by the Congress government," Rao said.