Cabinet expansion; surprises in store!

Hyderabad: After winning the trust vote in the Assembly early this week, Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy is now concentrating on Cabinet reshuffle and set to leave for Delhi on Friday.

The Chief Minister is also likely to discuss the issue of disqualification of party MLAs, who had violated the party whip with the party high command and UPA chair person Sonia Gandhi during his visit.

The Chief Minister, who is understood to have prepared a 'preliminary list' of the ministers, will implement the expansion in consultations with the Central leadership.

When he took over the mantle a year ago, Kiran Kumar Reddy had 39 ministers in the Cabinet. However, three ministers ' J Krishna Rao, K Venkata Reddy and Y S Vivekananda Reddy ' resigned due to various reasons.

While the first two quit demanding Telangana state, the last one put in his papers after he lost to YSR Congress honorary president YS Vijayamma in the by election to Pulivendula Assembly constituency six months ago.

Though the Cabinet expansion was on the cards after the merger of Praja Rajyam Party (PRP) with Congress, it got postponed due to the prevailing political situation.

When the PRP MLAs expressed their 'anguish' with the government on the eve of no confidence motion, Union Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad pacified and assured them they would be accommodated in the Cabinet soon.

'The PRP is demanding three berths in the Cabinet ' one each from three regions - but they may get two while a third MLA is likely to be made government Whip,' sources said.

PRP leader K Chiranjeevi is insisting that C Ramachandraiah should be accommodated as a replacement to Vivekananda Reddy, but Health Minister Dr D L Ravindra Reddy and Kamalapuram MLA G Veera Siva Reddy are opposing the same.

The political circles are abuzz with rumours that the Chief Minister may drop Transport Minister B Satyanarayana as he has been made president of the state Congress. But the latter has been pulling all strings to hold both positions.

Senior T Congress MLAs including R Damodar Reddy and another senior legislator, both from Nalgonda district, are also expecting ministrial berths.

A Congress MLC from Adliabad is also trying his luck to make it to the Cabinet.

Deputy Chief Minister C Damodar Raja Narasimha may be given Home portfolio and the incumbent P Sabitha Indra Reddy may be given another Ministry.