Telangana: Congress Dithers on New CM's Name, Swearing-in Ceremony Put Off

Hyderabad: Uncertainty surrounds the swearing-in ceremony of the Congress government in Telangana in spite of earlier reports indicating that the Chief Minister and a few senior ministers would take oath of office on Monday night.

All arrangements were made at Raj Bhavan on Monday for the swearing-in ceremony to be held at around 8 pm, after reports suggested that the Chief Minister candidate will be finalised in the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) meeting in the city on Monday morning.

Vehicles carrying tents, chairs etc moved into the Raj Bhavan premises, fuelling speculation that the ceremony could be held any time. But the CLP meeting decided to leave the decision on selection of the Chief Minister candidate to the party high command.

Later, AICC observers led by Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D.K..Shivakumar got a call from party high command to rush to Delhi for consultations on this issue. The AICC observers left for Delhi by a special flight from Begumpet airport. With this, the swearing-in ceremony was put off.

Party sources said that if the high command decides on the CM candidate on Tuesday, the swearing-in-ceremony could be held either on Tuesday or Wednesday. It is also being speculated that TPCC chief Revanth Reddy will take oath as Chief Minister along with two or three senior ministers on Tuesday or Wednesday. Later, the full-fledged Cabinet will take oath on December 9 for which either Raj Bhavan or LB Stadium is being considered.

If the high command wants the Cabinet to take oath at one go, the ceremony will be held at Raj Bhavan on Tuesday or Wednesday. The party wants to hold a victory rally in LB Stadium on December 9, the day in 2009 when the Congress-led UPA government initiated the process of formation of Telangana state. The day also coincides with the birthday of Sonia Gandhi.