New AP CM has a torrid time at first cabinet meeting

The first meeting of the N Kiran Kumar Reddy led cabinet in Andhra Pradesh was rocked by an unsavoury spectacle of a minister taking on the chief minister to task on the issue of social injustice.

Botsa Satyanrayana, a powerful Congress leader of the backward classes from north coastal Andhra went all out in attacking Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy at the cabinet meeting on Thursday evening in Hyderabad.

Botsa, who was among the ministers unhappy with the allocation of "insignificant portfolios" by the chief minister and concentrating the important portfolios in the hands of ministers from his own Reddy community, told the reporters after the cabinet meet that the issue was not his own portfolio but what was being done to the backward classes and weaker sections.

"I raised the issue of social justice", he said with out giving details, but sources said that Botsa came armed with all the statistics of the positions given to the backward classes in the state since 2002 during the Telegu Desam Party regime and subsequently by YS Rajasekhar Reddy's government.

"He (Botsa) asked the criteria and the basis on which the ministers from different castes were allocated portfolios", a source said. He also wondered whether this kind of composition of the cabinet he can lead the party to victory in 2014 elections.

While there were many ministers unhappy with the allocation of portfolios, Botsa was most voluble and open in his criticism of the CM and asked pointed questions to him like why new comers were given key portfolios and seniors were ignored and why all the important portfolios were given to Reddys. He pointed out that finance, home, agriculture, major irrigation, medical education and many other important portfolios were given to Reddys and insignificant posts were given to others.

Botsa told the reporters that backward classes and weaker sections who constitute more than 80% of the population, should get the preference in the allocation of portfolios and funds under the development and welfare programs. "The Congress party has always stood for the weaker sections. It is for every body", he said.

In the process Botsa Satyanarayana has emerged as the rallying point for all the disgruntled ministers.

Sources said that one of the new ministers Sudarshan Reddy also expressed his inability to handle the portfolio of major irrigation and sought a change.

The CM merely replied to Botsa and others that the issue of allocation of the portfolios and other matters will be solved after talking to the high command. He offered to share some of his own portfolios with the unhappy ministers.

On the resignation of Vatti Vasanth Kumar from the cabinet, Botsa said that the CM and many others were talking to him to persuade him to withdraw it. "I am hopeful he will come back", he said.