Karnataka remains a prominent subject in the run-up to the upcoming assembly elections in Telangana. Following a previous attack by Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) leader K Kavitha over the load-shedding in the state, Telangana’s IT minister and BRS working president KT Rama Rao (KTR) launched a scathing attack on the Congress party over its unfulfilled promises from the Karnataka election campaign.
In a social media post on X (formerly Twitter) on Thursday, KTR called out Congress leader Rahul Gandhi for his commitment to make Karnataka’s Ballari district the “Jeans capital of India,” while the local jeans industry grapples with the severe distress caused by persistent power cuts under the Congress government.
“Rahul Gandhi had promised to make Ballari the jeans capital of India. Now, the Jeans industry of Ballari is in serious distress due to irregular and prolonged power cuts by the Congress government,” he said in his social media post.
In the lead-up to the Karnataka assembly elections on May 10, former Congress chief and current Wayanad MP Rahul Gandhi had made five key commitments, one of which was a pledge of ₹5,000 crore for the establishment of an apparel park in Ballari.
During his Bharat Jodo Yatra in September 2022, Rahul Gandhi had visited Ballari and made promises to enhance the district’s infrastructure. Rahul Gandhi stated during the roadshow, “I visited some jeans manufacturing units in Ballari during the Bharat Jodo Yatra. I witnessed the challenges faced by the women employed in these units. I wish to assure you that we are committed towards transforming Ballari into India’s denim capital. We intend to establish a dedicated jeans manufacturing park.”
{{/usCountry}}During his Bharat Jodo Yatra in September 2022, Rahul Gandhi had visited Ballari and made promises to enhance the district’s infrastructure. Rahul Gandhi stated during the roadshow, “I visited some jeans manufacturing units in Ballari during the Bharat Jodo Yatra. I witnessed the challenges faced by the women employed in these units. I wish to assure you that we are committed towards transforming Ballari into India’s denim capital. We intend to establish a dedicated jeans manufacturing park.”
{{/usCountry}}He further added that if Congress is re-elected to power in Karnataka, they would allocate ₹5,000 crore to establish a Jeans Apparel Park in Ballari.
However, Ballari, known for its thriving jeans industry, is currently grappling with a series of challenges that are taking a toll on the local entrepreneurs and workers in the business. After facing rising raw material costs and trade disruptions due to import and export issues, the industry is now struggling with irregular power supply.
The erratic power cuts are affecting not only the business community but also consumers and small-scale industries across the region. This unforeseen power crisis has cast a shadow on both direct and indirect stakeholders. An estimated 60,000 to 80,000 families in Ballari depend on the jeans industry for their livelihood.
Apart from the BRS, the Karnataka Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has also raised the challenges faced by the jeans industry in the district. BJP MP Tejasvi Surya, accused the Congress of making false promises. “Six months ago, Rahul Gandhi had promised to make Ballari the Jeans Capital of the country. Today, the CM Siddaramaiah government is fulfilling that promise with power cuts, further crippling the already-existing industry,” he said on Wednesday.
Karnataka BJP’s social media posts, which were equally critical, had accused the Congress of pushing the state into a severe power crisis, resulting in the closure of industries, abandonment of crops by farmers, and public struggles to meet their energy needs. “After promising to establish a Jeans Park in Ballari, with a commitment of investing ₹5,000 crores, Dynast Rahul Gandhi is nowhere to be seen as Karnataka plunges into darkness,” Karnataka BJP posted on X Wednesday.
“INC [Indian National Congress] Karnataka has pushed the state into a huge power crisis forcing industries to shut down, farmers to abandon crops and public to struggle to get enough power to sustain their lives. INC’s misgovernance and bad implementation of guarantees have taken Karnataka to the brink of collapse!” it added.
The power shortage in the state has been an issue in both Karnataka and poll-bound Telangana. The attack on the Congress over the jeans industry in Ballari comes days after BRS MLC K Kavitha used the shortage of power in Karnataka to attack the Congress party in Telangana. Kavitha’s comments came after Karnataka’s energy minister KJ George had said that the government will provide a continuous five-hour power supply to farmers.
On October 19, Kavita had said that the Congress is attempting to export its electricity problems to Telangana. While highlighting the statement made by the Karnataka power minister during the 2023 state assembly elections promising 20 hours of electricity, she questioned why they are now settling for just 5 hours. “The Karnataka power minister [KJ George] promised 20 hours of electricity during the elections but now won’t accept just 5 hours. Similarly, the Telangana PCC president expressed that 3 hours of electricity suffice, deeming 24 hours unnecessary. Why is Congress introducing electricity issues to us?” she had tweeted.
Responding to the criticism, a senior Karnataka minister, requesting anonymity, said that the Karnataka government has issued a directive to identify suitable land for the establishment of a jeans textile park in Ballari and the state is purchasing power to make up for the shortage. “Chief minister Siddaramaiah led a meeting of MLAs from Ballari, instructing district in-charge minister B Nagendra and Ballari city MLA Nara Bharath Reddy in August to identify appropriate land for the creation of the jeans textile park,” the minister said.
Following the meeting in August, Nara Bharath Reddy had said that during the meeting has been directed to prepare a Detailed Project Report (DPR) and identify suitable land within Ballari City for the proposed textile park. “In collaboration with the district administration to compile a comprehensive list of government-owned lands for the project is also underway,” he had said.