The State Cabinet meeting scheduled for Friday has assumed importance and significance as Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy is expected to bring the curtains down on the continuing suspense over the resignation of Roads and Buildings Minister Dharmana Prasada Rao.
It might be recalled here that the Minister for Roads and Buildings had submitted his resignation on moral grounds following the CBI naming him in the charge-sheet filed in the disproportionate assets (DA) case of Kadapa MP Y. S. Jaganmohan Reddy.
After his cabinet colleague put in his papers, the Chief Minister has been caught in a dilemma on the action to be taken on it. While the Opposition parties have launched a scathing attack on the ruling Congress and the government for allowing a “tainted minister’ to continue in office and demanded his ouster forthwith, as many as 24 ministers, including some “tainted” among them, have solidly come in support of the minister and pressurizing the Chief Minister not to accept his resignation.
Having faced with a caught between the devil and deep sea situation, Kiran Kumar Reddy tried to wriggle out of the tricky situation by putting the onus on the Congress High Command to take a final call on the issue. However in passing the buck game the central leaders diligently pushed the ball in to the Chief Minister’s court to act appropriately.
Thus the cabinet meeting, which is being held for the first time after the outbreak of the Dharmana episode, has assumed political importance as the fate of the resigned minister is expected to be decided when the issue comes up for review and discussion among the council of ministers. Significantly the Chief Minister had extended an invitation to Dharmana to attend tomorrow’s cabinet meeting though the minister had distanced himself from office after putting his papers on moral grounds.
Will Dharmana stick to his guns and refrain from attending the cabinet meeting as it would be “unethical” to attend after having submitted his resignation on moral grounds or will he succumb to the pressure from his ministerial colleagues, especially the tainted amongst them, who want him to be present at the cabinet meet for the sheer purpose of saving their own skin. These aspects have become the subject matter of heated debate in political and official circles as the Chief Minister has been keeping his decision on the issue close to his chest.
However there were speculations that the Chief Minister on the insistence of his council of ministers might continue to keep in abeyance any decision of forwarding the resignation letter to the Governor. The cabinet might, also through a resolution, advise Dharmana not to press for his resignation and appeal to him to resume his ministerial duties much to the relief and delight of the beleaguered minister. At the same time, there is a talk making rounds in corridors of power that Friday’s cabinet meeting might be the last to be attended by Dharmana.
Though the Cabinet meeting gives prominence to discuss the Dharma episode, other important issues confronting the state like the acute power crisis, fee reimbursement, the fee structure for the engineering and other professional colleges etc are also expected to come up for a thorough discussion. (NSS).