Overview
- Both chief ministers exchanged formal letters and fresh barbs Tuesday as campaigning ended ahead of Kerala’s April 9 Assembly election.
- Pinarayi Vijayan rebuked what he called personally insulting remarks, drew criticism for the near‑derogatory line “Dash mone Revanth,” and said a chief minister must keep decorum.
- A. Revanth Reddy replied that he would not “respond with a rash comment,” pressed for a face‑to‑face, fact‑based debate, and argued Vijayan was using outdated 2023–24 NITI Aayog SDG Index data to judge Telangana.
- Reddy touted Telangana’s latest numbers — a 2024–25 GSDP of ₹16.12 lakh crore, roughly 10% growth, and per‑capita income of ₹3.87 lakh — and asked whether Kerala’s late‑2025 “zero extreme poverty” claim was independently verified.
- Vijayan defended Kerala’s long‑term gains and rejected talk of industrial stagnation, while Reddy raised unresolved allegations tied to the Kerala gold‑smuggling case and Sabarimala gold; Congress leaders in Kerala also criticized Vijayan’s language, keeping tone and facts in focus for voters.