Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao is all set to reward a majority of the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) legislators with several Cabinet-rank posts in the coming days once the Cabinet expansion, scheduled on December 16, is over.
The move seems to satisfy every legislator in the party and give little scope for dissent. An indication that he was serious about engaging the legislators with one work or the other was evident with his decision to revive the posts of Parliamentary Secretaries.
By giving chance to at least six legislators, the Chief Minister has successfully managed to ensure that these representatives would enjoy the status of deputy Ministers. With the outer limit for Council of Ministers fixed at 18, including the Chief Minister, the best option left for Mr. Rao was to go for the posts of Parliamentary Secretaries, which was in vogue during late M. Channa Reddy’s tenure as Chief Minister in 1978-79.
The Chief Minister, in a calculated move in the run up to the Cabinet expansion, has avoided possible resentment by announcing key appointments. He has made Koppula Easwar, senior Dalit MLA as Chief Whip. Apart from Deputy Chief Minister T. Rajaiah, who is a Madiga, the Chief Minister had recently appointed Rasamayi Balakishan as Cultural Ambassador and named student leader Pidamarthi Ravi as Chairman of SC Development Corporation. Both of them belong to the Madiga community.
The Dharmapuri MLA was a strong contender for the Minister’s post as a representative of the Mala community. Similarly, other key aspirants such as Jalagam Venkata Rao, V. Srinivas Goud, Gampa Goverdhan, Nallala Odelu, all senior legislators have been appointed as Parliamentary Secretaries or Government Whips.
Coming down to Cabinet expansion, Mr. Rao appears to have made up his mind to reward Konda Surekha with a ministerial berth. Kova Laxmi, the Gond MLA from Asifabad, could be the lucky one if the Chief Minister decides to give preference to her over Ajmeera Chandulal.
To avoid criticism that three members, including himself, from the Velama community are in the Cabinet, Jupally Krishna Rao is likely to make it. This would in turn fill up the Mahabubnagar vacancy.
But, a masterstroke would be inducting Tummala Nageswara Rao, an influential Kamma leader from Khammam district. The former TDP strongman is all set to be elected as an MLC in February to make the TRS stronger in Khammam. A. Indrakaran Reddy, Enguu Ravinder Reddy and C. Laxma Reddy are eyeing the Cabinet berth from the Reddy community.
The Chief Minister has in principle decided to name academic Ganta Chakrapani as the Chairman of Telangana State Public Service Commission. Names of Yerrola Srinivas and Bonthu Ramamohan are doing the rounds for the post of State-run corporations.
