Hyderabad:Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy, who will complete one year in office on Saturday, will have a unique feather in his cap: He is perhaps the only Congress Chief Minister who was spared of dissidence within his Cabinet as well as in the party.
It is a feat that even party strongman Dr Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy could not achieve due to constant and open opposition from the likes of senior party leaders P. Janardhan Reddy and D. Srinivas.
Considered a political lightweight at the time of assuming office, Revanth Reddy has seen bitter critics like roads and buildings minister Komatireddy Venkat Reddy turn friends and openly pledge loyalty on several occasions. Revanth Reddy has also established a professional working relation with potential contender for the top post, Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka.
The first success came with the smooth formation of the Cabinet and allocation of portfolios last year. “Every minister in the Cabinet was assured of one good portfolio. I believe in collective responsibility and also know the limitations in a party like the Congress,” Revanth Reddy said, revealing the secret of his success in an informal chat with Deccan Chronicle recently.
This was in sharp contrast to acrimonious political battle witnessed on the day the Kiran Kumar Reddy Cabinet took oath in 2010. “Yet, the first session of the Assembly post the 2023 polls was shocking,” a confidant of the Chief minister pointed out. “It was a one man show by Revanth and none came to his defence when the Opposition attacked him personally.”
Things have changed, and the Lok Sabha polls, in which the arch rival BRS of former chief minister K. Chandrashekar Rao were reduced to zero, helped Revanth Reddy settle down and turn the tables against the Opposition.
A good orator, Revanth Reddy immediately connects with party cadres at public meetings though he has been often criticised for using harsh language against his political rivals. However, sources close to the Chief Minister point out that he singularly brought down the stature of Chandrashekar Rao by replying to him in the same harsh language that the BRS president was known to use.
In a striking contrast to his predecessor Revanth Reddy has also been clearly distinguishing between politics and administration when it comes to dealing with the Centre. A stickler to protocol, he has been keeping Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union ministers and Governor Jishnu Dev Varma in good humour.
“Certain issues like securing defence land for elevated corridors in Cantonment could not be resolved during strong YSR regime which coincided with UPA rule at the Centre. I convinced the Centre and got the necessary approvals,” Revanth Reddy pointed out.
On the political front, he was also quick to turn the tables against the BJP central leadership for allegedly protecting the BRS by delaying sanction to investigate former minister K.T. Rama Rao in the Formula E scam. With the honeymoon over and people, though in sporadic incidents, exhibiting their anger, the real test for Revanth Reddy would begin in the New Year when the state goes for local body polls.
While the BRS supremo still prefers to be in political oblivion, the BJP central leadership upped the ante in the aftermath of Maharastra elections with Modi giving a call to Telangana party workers to work with a sole objective of dislodging Congress.
