Deputy CM post issue left to YSR

Pressure mounting on Chief Minister from senior Congress leaders

HYDERABAD: Pressure is mounting on Chief Minister Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy to accede to the demand of accommodating a Deputy Chief Minister in his Cabinet.

Before leaving for New Delhi on Friday, the Chief Minister maintained that this decision had to be taken by the AICC leadership indicating that he had no inclination to creating the post in spite of the demand of a section of the State Congress leadership.

Senior Congress leaders from Telangana have been speaking in favour of the post claiming that such a move will send positive signals to people of the region.

Former CLP leader and Khairatabad MLA P. Janardhan Reddy was among the first to raise the issue.

But, on Saturday AICC general secretary in-charge of AP Digvijay Singh reportedly told the television news channels in New Delhi that the Deputy Chief Minister post was the prerogative of the Chief Minister.

The latest stand is being interpreted by senior Congress leaders as "an indication that the AICC is in favour of creating a Deputy Chief Minister post and a snub to Dr. Rajasekhara Reddy".

Leaders' claim

The AICC has also put a spoke in Dr. Reddy's plans to have mostly fresh faces in the Cabinet by firmly conveying to him that only seniors must be accommodated, they said.

Veteran leaders like G. Venkata Swami, MP, who have trained their guns on the Chief Minister for his handling of the Babli issue of late, have already demanded that the post be given to a BC from Telangana.

Another Congress MP Sarve Satyanarayana too has come up with a similar demand.

Meanwhile, APCC president K. Keshava Rao, speaking at a meeting to discuss the Supreme Court's stay on OBC reservations, went a step ahead, and said the BCs should aspire for higher posts and not merely the Deputy Chief Minister post.