Revanth Reddy Turns Weakest CM?
After a decade, the people of Telangana gave the Congress party another chance to rule the state. It wasn’t because they expected miracles from Congress, but mainly due to the strong anti-incumbency sentiment against then Chief Minister and BRS chief K. Chandrasekhar Rao (KCR). Along with that, the aggressive campaign style of then TPCC president Revanth Reddy worked in the party’s favor. Even so, Congress managed to win only with a narrow majority — a fact well known to everyone. However, less than two years into Congress rule in Telangana, discussions are already circulating that Chief Minister Revanth Reddy’s graph has sharply fallen. The series of developments taking place within the Congress government has led many to believe that the party’s days are numbered and that there’s little hope for revival.
There seems to be no coordination among the ministers in Revanth Reddy’s cabinet. The MLAs, too, appear to be acting on their own whims. Overall, it is being widely discussed that Revanth Reddy has no control either over his cabinet or his MLAs. One minister reportedly commented that the same Revanth Reddy who looked very strong before the elections now appears to be the weakest chief minister. Referring to the controversy involving Minister Konda Surekha’s OSD (Officer on Special Duty), a minister questioned, “Should any government send police to a minister’s residence to look for an OSD? Is that the way an experienced administration behaves?” The minister expressed surprise, asking whether there was truly no other way to handle the matter if the police wanted to take the OSD into custody.
Adding fuel to the fire, Minister Konda Surekha’s daughter Sushmita directly criticized Chief Minister Revanth Reddy and his family — shocking even senior Congress leaders. Soon after this, the Konda Surekha couple met the CM along with PCC president Mahesh Kumar Goud, which gave rise to talk that the CM had struck a compromise with them. Nearly two years into his tenure, Revanth Reddy reportedly remarked during a review meeting that “IAS officers are taking decisions on their own,” which many say exposes the dire state of governance. Ministers themselves believe such comments reflect Revanth Reddy’s inexperience and his inability to assert control over the administration.
One official questioned, “If an IAS officer can take decisions without the knowledge of a minister, and the government punishes only one person, what stops others from doing the same again?” Observers say that by making such remarks publicly, the government only damages its own credibility. Senior IAS officer Syed Ali Murtaza Rizvi is known as an honest bureaucrat. He has already been transferred multiple times — reportedly for refusing to carry out certain tasks demanded by ministers. The key point being discussed now is that many IAS officers who once faced severe criticism and corruption allegations from Revanth Reddy during his opposition days are now holding crucial posts, while a reputedly honest officer like Rizvi is being forced to take voluntary retirement. If Rizvi truly did something wrong, the government could have taken action against him. But this entire episode, many believe, has only tarnished the government’s image further.
