Nizamabad: With Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy poised to expand his council of ministers on June 8 or June 11, Congress leaders and residents of the undivided Nizamabad district are hopeful the region will finally gain a seat in the state cabinet.
Party sources say three or four new ministers are likely to be sworn in, and veteran MLA P. Sudarshan Reddy has emerged as the district’s frontrunner. The four-time legislator from Bodhan, elected in 1999, 2004, 2009 and 2023, previously held portfolio assignments in the cabinets of Dr Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy, K. Rosaiah and N. Kiran Kumar Reddy during undivided Andhra Pradesh.
Although Congress captured nine Assembly seats in the district cluster in 2023, no ministerial post has been allotted to the area since the party took office. Besides Sudarshan Reddy, the district’s Congress bench comprises first-time MLAs R. Bhupathi Reddy (Nizamabad Rural), K. Madanmohan Rao (Yellareddy) and Thota Laxmikanth Rao (Jukkal).
Local Congress leaders argue the absence of a cabinet representative has hampered both administrative work and party organisation. “Nizamabad needs a voice in the ministry, and Sudarshan Reddy is the obvious choice,” a senior district leader told Deccan Chronicle, noting the MLA’s long-standing role in coordinating party affairs and his close family ties to the chief minister.
The final list of inductees is expected to be cleared by the Congress high command in the next 48 hours.
