Call it an act of genius or one of autocracy, but the much-hyped 'Gram Jyothi' programme of KCR has been designed to facilitate a smooth residual of authority in KTR, his son.
All Ministries would now have to report to the Panchayati Raj Ministry which is headed by KTR and all major programmes of the government come under the purview of ‘Gram Jyothi’.
Rs 2 crore to Rs 6 crore would be allotted to each village under the ‘Gram Jyothi’ programme and it goes without saying that village heads and other authorities at the grassroots level would have to be cozying up to the PR Ministry for allocation of funds.
In a way, the programme is centralizing authority under KTR. But ultimately, this scheme emphatically puts paid to any political ambitions of Harish Rao for the CM’s chair.
Until the emergence of KTR on to the political scene, Harish Rao had put in yeoman efforts for the TRS. He was the No 2 in the Party, the principle trouble shooter and considered by many to have all the qualities for becoming the CM after KCR.
But with KTR’s arrival, he was forced to play second fiddle and even was on the point of joining the Congress before the death of YSR allegedly forced him to continue with the TRS.
Will Harish Rao put aside his own ego and abilities for the sake of his cousin or will he try and realize his own potential?
