TRS all set to join AP govt on June 21

Likely to get seven ministerial berths in state cabinet

The Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) is all set to join the state cabinet on June 21, the day the budget session of the Andhra Pradesh Assembly begins.

The Congress high command in consultation with chief minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy has agreed to give seven ministerial berths to TRS in the state cabinet as it has been demanding.

Out of the seven ministers, six would be of cabinet rank and one would be of state rank. Portfolios to be offered to TRS are yet to be decided while the names of TRS legislators who could be inducted in the state cabinet would be decided by TRS president K Chandrashekar Rao in a couple of days, according to party sources.

The TRS president has once again shown flexibility with regard to its demand for Rajya Sabha seat by accepting the offer of a planning member post, and offering the Rajya Sabha seat to the CPI (M).

Out of the six vacancies from the state, the Congress and its allies could win five seats leaving a lone seat for the Telugu Desam Party.

The TRS has been asking for the fifth seat as it has 26 of the requisite 42 legislators required to win a Rajya Sabha nomination as compared to the CPI(M)'s nine legislators in the state Assembly.

Despite the bitterness between the TRS and the CPI(M) on the issue of statehood for Telangana, KCR has come to terms with the Congress party's decision to allot the fifth Rajya Sabha seat to the CPI (M).

Reports have indicated that CPI(M) may either nominate its politburo member Sitaram Yechuri or the state committee secretary in the ensuing Rajya Sabha elections.

Causing disappointment to the Congress leaders who have been aspiring for cabinet berths, chief minister Rajasekhara Reddy in a statement in Delhi said that the cabinet expansion would be limited to the TRS ministers only.

Sources close to Reddy say that the chief ministers hands would be tied if he right away inducted more Congressmen into the cabinet. The state cabinet can have a maximum of 44 ministers, including the post of the chief minister, or 15 per cent of the size of the state legislature.

The cabinet strength will go up to 32 after inducting the TRS ministers on June 21.