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'Excuse me,' Nirmala Sitharaman raps collector in Telangana; KTR ‘appalled’
Nirmala Sitharaman asked the collector why the flexis of PM Modi were not there at the fair price shop that she visited in Telangana on Friday. "You will as the district administrator ensure that the flexis are not be removed, that shall not be torn, that shall not be affected," Sitharaman told collector Jitesh Pillai
Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday publicly reprimanded the collector of Kamareddy district Jitesh Patil as she asked him the Centre's and the state's share of the rice in fair price shops. "Not at all. You are an officer of the Indian Administrative Service, belonging to the Telangana cadre...You are telling me the state is giving ₹34? Excuse me! You want to think about your answer," the finance minister said. As the video went viral, Telangana minister KTR said he was 'appalled by the unruly conduct of Nirmala Sitharaman'.
"You think about it and within half an hour before my address to the media give me the answer so that I can tell them that even if the Collector could not answer my question immediately,.. he struggled and got the information," Sitharaman said to the collector.
"These political histrionics on the street will only demoralise hardworking IAS officers. My compliments to collector Jitesh V Pillai, IAS on his dignified conduct," KTR tweeted.
Telangana BJP leaders shared the video and claimed that the IAS officer did not know that the Centre provides ₹28 of the ₹35 Kg rice which beneficiaries get at ₹1 and the state government provides ₹6. The collector told the finance minister the state government's share is ₹34.
Sitahraman also asked the collector why the picture of PM Modi was not there at the fair price shop she visited. "You will as the district administrator ensure that the flexis are not be removed, that shall not be torn, that shall not be affected," Sitharaman said. "If a banner is not there, I will come to this place again," she added.
'Unbecoming of a Union minister'
Telangana minister T Harish Rao said the way Nirmala Sitharaman talked was unbecoming of a Union minister. The minister claimed the Centre supplies 10 kg of rice per month at ₹3 per kg to 50 to 55 per cent of the cardholders under NFSA (National Food Security Act) and the state government supplies rice to the rest 45-50 per cent at its own cost.
"This is ridiculous. She is talking in such a way that it degrades the stature of the Prime Minister. She was talking as if all the rice (which is given free of cost) was being supplied by them (Centre)," the minister said.
(With agency inputs)
