Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy is locked in a power struggle with Union Minister Jaipal Reddy in the guise of gas allocation.
Published: 19th August 2012 09:41 AM | Last Updated: 19th August 2012 09:41 AM
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy and Union Petroleum Minister S Jaipal Reddy are said to be locked in combat for the chief minister’s chair, using natural gas allocation to the state as pretext to continue their power game.
The war between the senior leaders began with Jaipal losing face in the allocation of 2 Million Metric Standard Cubic Meter Per Day (MMSCMD) gas, which was diverted from Reliance gas plant in Andhra Pradesh to Ratnagiri power plant in Maharashtra. Kiran Kumar rushed to Delhi and called on Prime Minister. Gas was immediately restored.
The chief minister’s camp suspects that Jaipal Reddy has been lobbying for a regime change, using his proximity as a Union Minister to the heavy hitters in the Congress high command. Last week’s moves by the chief minister to embarrass the Union minister on the issue of gas allocation were designed to shoo off his challenge, sources said.
Camp followers of Kiran Kumar, notably government whip T Jayaprakash Reddy, have in recent days stepped up their media presence to show Jaipal as a manipulator conspiring to dethrone the chief minister.
However, Jaipal followers insist that there is more to it than merely their leader’s desire; the high command too, of its own volition, is mulling a change of leadership in the state. “There are strong indications from Delhi that a change of guard is imminent. Kiran Reddy’s camp is unfairly trying to blame Jaipal Reddy,” said MLCs K Yadav Reddy and K R Amos, close aides of the Union minister.
With a cold war all but declared between the two, the Congress party in the state is beginning to cleave down the middle.
Rajya Sabha MP V Hanumantha Rao, MP Ponnam Prabhakar, ministers D Sridhar Babu and K Jana Reddy, and former Rajya Sabha MP K Kesav Rao, and MLCs Amos and Yadav Reddy are behind Jaipal in this cockfight.
Kiran’s main supporters are ministers like N Raghuveera Reddy, Kondru Murali and K Parthasarathy, government whips Jagga Reddy and R Padma Raju and former minister J Chittaranjan Das and MLCs M Ranga Reddy and Bhanu Prasad.
Watching with interest from the sidelines are ministers Kanna Lakshminarayana and J Geetha Reddy, party seniors J C Diwakar Reddy, Gade Venkat Reddy and Paladugu Venkata Rao. PCC chief Botcha Satyanarayana, another claimant to the chief minister’s chair, is keeping away from this joust should it prove to be a zero sum game for either of the combatants. Rajya Sabha MP K Chiranjeevi is another aspirant who is ostentatiously ignoring the contest.
As is its wont, the Congress high command has said nothing on the matter, while deputing emissary Vayalar Ravi to whisper suitable encouragement to both camps. Fresh after the Congress’ humbling in the last round of byelections, Ravi had declared there would be no change of guard in the state.
-Sunday Standard
-Sunday Standard
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