If the reports coming from the Telugu Desam Party sources are to be believed, none of the defectors from the YSR Congress party into the Telugu Desam Party might be accommodated in the cabinet of Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu on technical grounds.
According to initial reports, Naidu was planning to induct at least three MLAs who defected from YSRC in his cabinet.
The names of Bhuma Nagi Reddy from Kurnool, Jyothula Nehru from East Godavari and Sujaya Venkata Krishna Ranga Rao from Vizianagaram were said to be more or less confirmed. In fact, even the name of Vijayawada MLA Md Jaleel Khan was also doing rounds initially.
However, it is learnt Governor E S L Narasimhan is understood to have expressed his reservations for administering oath to the defected MLAs on technical grounds, at a time when the petition on disqualifying the defectors was pending before the assembly Speaker and also a case is pending in the high court to this effect.
On moral grounds, too, the Governor is learnt to have opposed the move, as it was the TDP leadership which had strongly opposed the induction of its MLA Talasani Srinivasa Yadav in the cabinet of Telangana chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao a couple of years ago. So, how can it defend giving cabinet berths to defectors from YSRC?
The Governor said he might have to face the criticism from people as well as other political parties for setting a bad precedent.
He reportedly advised Naidu to wait till the petition is disposed of by the Speaker or the court or ask the defected MLAs to resign from their posts before becoming the ministers. They can get elected again within six months or nominated as MLCs.
