Stage is set for the induction of senior Congress leader and former Indian cricket captain Mohammad Azharuddin into the Telangana cabinet headed by chief minister A Revanth Reddy on Friday.
Azharuddin will be formally inducted into the state cabinet at a brief ceremony at Raj Bhavan on Friday, according to an official media communication.
State governor Jishnu Dev Varma will administer the oath of office and secrecy to Azharuddin at Raj Bhavan on Friday morning, in the presence of the chief minister and other cabinet colleagues.
However, the Bharatiya Janata Party took strong exception to induction of Azharuddin into the state cabinet ahead of the by-election to Jubilee Hills assembly seat, polling for which is scheduled on November 11.
A delegation of the Telangana BJP led by party’s election commission affairs committee chairman Marri Shashidhar Reddy met chief electoral officer C Sudarshan Reddy at his chambers and requested him to stall the swearing-in ceremony of Azharuddin.
“The proposal to give cabinet berth to Mohd Azharuddin is nothing but an attempt to woo and garner the votes of a section of the voters in the upcoming Jubilee Hills by-election and a gross violation of model code of conduct,” Shashidhar Reddy said.
The BJP leader said though the model code of conduct was not applicable to the entire city of Hyderabad, the proposal to induct Azharuddin into the state cabinet would adversely affect the by-election in the Jubilee Hills constituency, of which he is a voter.
Shashidhar Reddy also pointed out that Azharuddin had contested as a candidate from Jubilee Hills constituency in 2023 assembly elections.
“So, offering him a ministry is nothing but a mala fide intention of the Congress to woo a section of voters in the Jubilee Hills assembly constituency,” he said.
Pradesh Congress Committee spokesperson and Bhongir MP Chamala Kiran Kumar Reddy alleged that the BJP was “unable to tolerate” the Congress move to include a prominent minority leader in the cabinet,
“The BJP is playing divisive politics by trying to inflame communal sentiments in Jubilee Hills. Another opposition party Bharat Rashtra Samithi is secretly supporting this agenda,” Reddy said, claiming that the two parties had struck a “hidden deal” during the last Lok Sabha elections that helped BJP win eight seats in Telangana.
He accused BJP and BRS of a “joint conspiracy” to prevent the Congress from strengthening its secular base.
Azharuddin is being given the cabinet berth, as there are no minority ministers in the Revanth Reddy cabinet. At present, there are three vacancies in the cabinet, and the remaining two posts may be filled in December, Congress sources added.
Interestingly, Azharuddin is not currently a member of either the assembly or the state legislative council.
Though the Revanth Reddy government recommended his name for the MLC post, along with Prof M Kodandaram, under governor’s quota in August this year, the file has been pending with the Raj Bhavan due to an ongoing case before the Supreme Court regarding gubernatorial nominations.
“If the verdict is delayed or goes against the state’s plea, the government will have to explore alternate routes to secure Azharuddin’s legislative berth. Under the Constitutional provisions, a non-legislator inducted as minister must become a member of the legislature within six months,” the party leader said.
