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Sunday 27 September, 2009

Rosaiah consolidating his position as Chief Minister

Desaraju Surya
Hyderabad: Surely and steadily, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister K Rosaiah is consolidating his position. By asserting that All India Congress Committee chief Sonia Gandhi was “not in the habit of changing Chief Ministers,” Rosaiah tried to send a clear message to the pro-Jagan lobby that he was here to stay for a longer innings. It has been 24 days since he became Chief Minister but Rosaiah has so far shown no signs of any insecurity despite a high-pitch campaign within the Congress for appointment of Kadapa MP Y S Jaganmohan Reddy as the successor to his late father Y S Rajasekhara Reddy. For many days after becoming the Chief Minister, Rosaiah told everyone that he would continue in the position as long as the party high command desired but the other day he minced no words in telling that he was going to play a longer innings than anticipated. “Sonia Gandhi doesn’t change Chief Ministers unless they prove to be not competent,” he observed even as Congress Central Working Committee members like G Venkata Swamy and K Keshava Rao publicly endorsed Rosaiah’s competence. Though some of the pro-Jagan lobbyists like Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee general secretary Ambati Rambabu tried to belittle Rosaiah saying he was “politically ineffective and weak,” the Chief Minister – in his inimitable witty style – shot back: “Given my age, I know my strengths and weaknesses.” Rosaiah, who served as a minister in various state Cabinets under successive Congress Chief Ministers, was also assertive in saying that he could “rise to the occasion” when the situation demanded. At the first formal meeting of the state Cabinet after he took over as Chief Minister, Rosaiah told his colleagues that he would continue to maintain the same old cordial relations with them “as long as I am in this chair.” Rosaiah’s no-nonsense approach and statesman-like demeanor have in a way made the ministers fall in line, though they initially adopted a belligerent posture on the demand for making Jagan the Chief Minister. In fact, not a single MLA of the party has so far spoken against Rosaiah as the Chief Minister though a majority of them too have been pitching for Jagan. All of them have now seemingly mellowed down to accept Rosaiah as their leader. Despite not being specific so far on the succession issue, the AICC too has sent strong signals to the Congress leaders here that Rosaiah was not a “stop-gap Chief Minister” as initially perceived. All this has helped Rosaiah firm up his position and settle down comfortably in his business. Once he formally moves into the Chief Minister’s official chamber in the C-block of the state Secretariat, Rosaiah will have been firmly in the saddle.