25-05-2025
Stalemate over cabinet expansion, new TPCC team continues
Hyderabad: Chief minister A Revanth Reddy, along with Telangana Congress president B Mahesh Kumar Goud, met AICC general secretary (Organisation) KC Venugopal at his residence in New Delhi on Sunday.
They discussed candidates to be finalised for five of the six vacant cabinet berths, the new TPCC team — which includes four working presidents and a large team of vice-presidents and general secretaries, among other crucial issues.
However, the discussions remained inconclusive regarding the finalisation of candidates for the cabinet and the new TPCC team. There is a possibility that Revanth Reddy may extend his stay in the national capital by another day to meet KC Venugopal again.
If he does stay back, he is also expected to meet AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi, depending on their availability, either on Monday or Tuesday.
Mahesh Goud will remain in Delhi. He is also expected to attend the Telangana Congress BC leaders' meeting with Rahul Gandhi on Monday, focusing on the caste census and the 42 per cent BC reservation Bill passed by the state assembly. However, there is no confirmation on whether the chief minister will also attend this session with Rahul Gandhi.
The AICC has invited state ministers, Congress MPs, MLCs, MLAs, and corporation chairpersons from the Backward Classes communities for a meeting in Delhi on May 26 to discuss the caste census conducted by the Telangana govt.
Sources in the AICC mentioned that it was an hour-long meeting where Revanth also discussed the strategy to be adopted on political platforms in connection with the Enforcement Directorate (ED) reportedly naming him in the National Herald-Young India money laundering case, in which Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi have been named as A-1 and A-2.
"The discussions mainly focused on the new TPCC team and social and district equations to be followed. Though there was a discussion on cabinet expansion too, it mainly centred around whether to take up the crucial exercise — pending for over one-and-a-half years — before the panchayat elections or after that. The Congress govt in Telangana wants to go for the rural local body polls when the monsoon is in full swing and after releasing Rythu Bharosa financial assistance to all the eligible farmers, and this could be in June or July," said an AICC leader.
The AICC leadership has also been delaying the finalisation of names for TPCC's new team, pending for eight months since B Mahesh Kumar Goud took over the reins of the state unit of the party from chief minister Revanth Reddy in Sept 2024.
