New Delhi: Anumula Revanth Reddy, the man who led his party to a much-needed victory in the five-state November elections, became the first Congress chief minister of Telangana on Thursday.
The 54-year-old was sworn in by Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan in Hyderabad’s Lal Bahadur Shastri Stadium in the afternoon, in a grand ceremony attended by Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi, Rahul and Priyanka as well as party president Mallikarjun Kharge. Karnataka’s Congress Chief Minister Siddaramaiah was also in attendance.
Besides Reddy, 11 ministers were administered the oath, among whom was deputy chief minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka.
The other ministers to take oath were N. Uttam Kumar Reddy, Komatireddy Venkat Reddy, Ponnam Prabhakar, Dasari Anasuya, Damodar Raja Narasimha, D. Sridhar Babu, Thummala Nageshwara Rao, Ponguleti Srinivasa Reddy, Konda Surekha, and Jupally Krishna Rao.
Some of these ministers had reportedly opposed Reddy’s appointment to the top post – which even led to a delay in the swearing-in – but later held their tongue after the party high command made its choice clear.
A large crowd of nearly one lakh people cheered on Reddy Thursday, who took a victory lap with Sonia Gandhi before going up on stage.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, whose party won three of the four key states, congratulated Reddy on becoming the chief minister of Telangana. “I assure all possible support to further the progress of the state and the welfare of its citizens,” Modi tweeted.
The BJP has bettered its tally this term, having won eight seats to 2018’s one.
As Congress state unit chief, Reddy led a high-octane campaign to dislodge the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) which had been in power since the state was formed in 2014. The Congress won 64 seats in the 119-member assembly, while the BRS got 39 seats.
The Congress’s win has largely been credited to Reddy’s organisation abilities, his oratory and his ability to quell internal feuds – albeit with help from the high command.
On his first day in office Thursday, Reddy approved the Congress’s six poll guarantees, and also gave a job to a disabled woman, according to news agency PTI.
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