Janardhan Reddy's DMK deal scuttles his ministerial hopes

It seems to be the end of the road for former Andhra Pradesh chief minister and MP N Janardhan Reddy. Reddy has badly hurt his chances of being included in the cabinet because of the controversy over the deal he brokered with DMK on behalf of the Congress party high command.

Reddy had also asked his wife Rajyalaxmi to resign from the Andhra Pradesh cabinet in protest of the denial of a berth to him in the central cabinet.

DMK chief Karunanidhi's open threat of reviewing his earlier decision of joining the Union government if the 'promised portfolios' were not allocated to his party came in as a rude shock to the sulking Andhra leader.

Though the issue has now been sorted out with the TRS chief K Chandrashekhar Rao graciously offering to give up his shipping portfolio, Reddy could well be out in the cold as far as the Congress is concerned.

Reddy's early outbursts against chief minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy and pressure tactics on the party high command against the non-inclusion of his name in the central cabinet fell flat when Sonia Gandhi reportedly clarified to him yesterday that it was the high command's decision to leave him out.

Though it appears coincidental, some Congress sections in the state are of the opinion that the deal with DMK has a bearing on the high command's decision to keep Reddy out of the government.

Union commerce minister Kamal Nath's statement saying that Reddy was not authorised by the AICC to give any written commitment on portfolios to be offered to DMK in return for their acceptance to join the United Progressive Alliance government is the last nail on Reddy's chances of joining the cabinet.

The DMK leadership decided to join the government only after NJR's mediation. Being punished for this achievement is an issue entirely of his own making, his critics point out.

With the party high command saying no to his request for a cabinet berth, his position in the state party affairs may considerably be weakened. As of now, the only parallel camp that exists outside the influence of chief minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy is that of Janardhana Reddy.

Sonia Gandhi's no-nonsense-attitude in dealing with inner party groups has come as a boost for Rajasekhara Reddy, as he is expected to further consolidate his position in the state party.

Sonia Gandhi's reported reply to Janardhan Reddy when he met her to make his case for a cabinet berth, has instantly neutralised G Venkata Swamy, the other sulking leader who failed to get a berth in the central cabinet.

He did not even attempt to meet her on the issue, though he was camping at Delhi along with AP State Congress president D Srinivas for the past three days.

Venkataswamy's son G Vinod too is a minister in Rajasekhara Reddy's cabinet. Along with Rajyalaxmi and D Srinivas, Vinod also has not assumed office due to obvious reasons.