The leadership of Telangana, ruled by Congress, saw a major upheaval on Thursday when chief minister Revath Reddy sacked Konda Surekha as state's environment minister and rescinded the appointment of G Chinna Reddy as vice chairman of State Planning Board with immediate effect.
According to the chief minister's office, a recommendation has been made to Telangana Governor Shiv Pratap Shukla in regard to the sacking of Surekha.
Why was Konda Surekha sacked?
One of the major reasons behind the action against Surekha is the remarks made by her daughter against chief minister Revanth Reddy and other leaders of the party, reported news agency PTI. Her daughter's remarks drew the ire of several Congress MLAs and functionaries
Congress Telangana's disciplinary committee had recommended taking action against Surekha for not condemning her daughter's remarks.
Apart from her, the disciplinary panels also suggested taking action against Chinna Reddy for criticising party MLA Tudi Meghareddy. Instead, Telangana's state Women's Commission Chairperson Gadwal Vijayalakshmi was appointed as the new vice chairperson of the State Planning Board.
{{/usCountry}}Apart from her, the disciplinary panels also suggested taking action against Chinna Reddy for criticising party MLA Tudi Meghareddy. Instead, Telangana's state Women's Commission Chairperson Gadwal Vijayalakshmi was appointed as the new vice chairperson of the State Planning Board.
{{/usCountry}}The tough action against Surekha and Chinna Reddy comes after chief minister Revant Reddy, deputy chief minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka, and state Congress president B Mahesh Kumar Goud held discussions with AICC leaders. This included Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge and general secretary KC Venugopal. The discussions were held in the national capital a few days back.
To put forth her version, Surekha also met Kharge and AICC incharge of party affairs Meenakshi Natarajan in Delhi.
'I am not at all at fault'
Following her removal from the cabinet, Surekha said on Thursday that she was “not at all at fault” and that she never said anything against the chief minister.
"They issued me a show-cause, but I had not levelled any allegations against Revanth Reddy or the party. In a meeting, my daughter expressed her frustration. She did that over an MLA candidate and levelled allegations. She spoke about something there on the CM. I am not at all responsible for it. I don't know what she wanted to say," Surekha was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.
On Wednesday, she said that she had reached out to the party leadership to not sack her due to her good performance as the minister and that her daughter is independent and she should not be held responsible for the latter's remarks.
Surekha also alleged that the demand for action against her was not made voluntarily by the MLAs of the party but “someone” was behind them. However, she refused to name anyone.
After the sacking, Surekha also said that she was not upset over losing her post as it was just “ornamental” for her and claimed that AICC did not want to remove her but it was the CM who insisted on doing do.
"At least they should have asked me before removing me. If they had asked me, I would have had the opportunity to ask why. I was removed without even taking my opinion. The AICC did not want me to be removed; the Chief Minister insisted on removing me," she said.
“I did not respond to my daughter’s statements only out of respect for her. I have done nothing wrong. Why should I be humiliated?” Surekha said on Thursday, adding that removing a woman minister would hit Congress back at national level.
(With inputs from PTI, ANI)