‘Unacceptable’: Congress Raps Revanth Reddy After Row Over ‘Inspiration From Hitler’ Remark

Last Updated:June 10, 2026, 11:43 IST

The controversy erupted after Revanth Reddy, speaking at a conclave in Bengaluru, claimed that HYDRAA's name and concept were inspired by Hitler's fondness for the word "Hydra".

The Congress has reprimanded Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy over his controversial remarks linking the Hyderabad Disaster Response and Asset Protection Agency (HYDRAA) to German dictator Adolf Hitler, with senior party leaders describing the statement against party ethos and ideology.

Congress general secretary (organisation) KC Venugopal told Times of India that the remarks were “not at all acceptable". He further said that the party high command has conveyed its disapproval to Reddy and advised him to exercise greater discipline in his public statements.

The controversy erupted after Revanth Reddy, speaking at a conclave in Bengaluru, claimed that HYDRAA’s name and concept were inspired by Hitler’s fondness for the word “Hydra".

“Hydra, the word is Hitler’s favourite word. His core team was called Hydra, which could assassinate anyone. So, I have taken inspiration from Hitler and named it HYDRAA," Reddy said.

The Telangana chief minister was defending HYDRAA’s role in removing encroachments and protecting lakes and government lands in Hyderabad. He argued that similar agencies should be established in other major cities to tackle environmental challenges, flooding and illegal encroachments.

The remarks drew sharp criticism from opposition parties, including the BJP, Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) and Left leaders.

BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla accused Reddy of displaying a “dictatorial mindset" and questioned whether Congress leader Rahul Gandhi would take action against him. Union minister and Secunderabad MP G. Kishan Reddy also condemned the statement, alleging that it reflected the Congress party’s “Emergency mindset" and demanding an unconditional apology.

The CPM also criticised the Telangana chief minister. CPM general secretary M.A. Baby said the remarks echoed ideological tendencies associated with the Sangh Parivar, while CPI(ML) Liberation leader Dipankar Bhattacharya termed the invocation of Hitler as an icon of governance “worrying".

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Shobhit Gupta

Shobhit Gupta is a sub-editor at News18.com and covers India and International news. He is interested in day to day political affairs in India and geopolitics. He earned his BA Journalism (Hons) degre...Read More

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