Cabinet carrots

Buffeted by the spectacular performance of the Telangana Rashtra Samiti (which won 11 seats in byelections in the Telangana region last month) and irritated that the High Command appears immobilised by the ‘yatra’ undertaken by former chief minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy’s son, Jaganmohan Reddy, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister K Rosaiah is keeping vacant as many as nine ministerships. The idea is to use these vacancies as a carrot to break the opposition in his own party. Of course, governance carries on — nine vacancies in the council of ministers merely brings down overall transaction costs.