Excuse me! Nirmala Sitharaman raps District Collector in Telangana

New Delhi, Sep 03: Union Finance Minister, Nirmala Sitharaman publicly reprimanded the collector of Kamareddy district Jitesh Patil as she asked him the Centre's and state's share of 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 Rs 34. Excuse me. You want to think about your answer, the finance minister said.

The video has gone viral and Telangana minister, K T Rama Rao said that he was appalled by the unruly conduct of the Union Minister.

"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 told the collector.

The video was shared by Telangana BJP leaders with the claim that the IAS officer did not know that the Centre provides Rs 28 of the Rs 35 kg rice which beneficiaries get at Rs 1. The state government provides Rs 6. The collector told the finance minister that the state government's share is Rs 34.

She also asked the collector why the picture of Prime Minister Narendra Modi was not there at the fair price show she visited. "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," she said. The minister also noted that if a banner is not there she would come to this place again.

Telangana minister Harish Rao said that this is ridiculous. She is talking in such a way that it degrades the stature of the PM. She was talking as if all the rice was being supplied by the centre, Rao also said.