Kiran denies differences with colleagues

Bonding for best:APCC president Botcha Satyanarayana, Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy and Deputy Chief Minister C. Damodar Rajanarasimha at a meeting in Hyderabad on Thursday.

HYDERABAD: Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy has reportedly denied any differences with his Cabinet colleagues and blamed the media for writing negative reports about them.

Amid growing reports that he had developed differences with the new PCC chief Botcha Satyanarayana and also some of his Cabinet colleagues, Mr. Reddy broached the issue at the Cabinet meeting on Thursday. After the official agenda was completed and officials left the meeting, Mr. Reddy referred to some reports that Finance Minister Anam Ramanarayana Reddy was not getting along with him.

The Chief Minister is said to have ticked off the reports saying the Finance Minister in fact had met him for over an hour on Wednesday night. “First, the media had written that I was not getting along with Mr. Satyanarayana. Today, they went to town talking about Mr. Ramanarayana Reddy feeling disappointed that he is not being taken into confidence. We cannot go on giving clarifications and denials to such reports. Let's ignore the reports and work in close tandem,” he was quoted as telling his colleagues.

He is believed to have said that when the PCC chief was discussing party affairs with him regularly, there was no scope for any differences.

The meeting reportedly decided that a list of leaders, who are sailing or likely to join the YSR Congress Party be prepared. In places where the MLAs are presently with Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy, alternative leadership would be developed, the Chief Minister is said to have remarked.

Sources said when some Ministers tried to raise the issue of ordinance appointing special officers for the local bodies, Mr. Reddy reportedly told them that the issue could be discussed afterwards as the High Court had already given a stay on the elections. The government may consider getting an ordinance issued only after the term of local bodies ends in July last week.

The Chief Minister is also said to have shot down a question on whether the elections would be held on party or non-party basis. Instead, steps are likely to be taken to conduct elections for cooperative societies. Some Ministers are said to have lamented that officials were dominating the show, to which the Chief Minister is said to have pointed out that the latest transfers were done in tune with such complaints. At least seven Ministers, including six from Telangana, could not attend the meeting as they were away in New Delhi.