Hyderabad: Winning parties in Telangana and residuary Andhra Pradesh, the TRS and the TD respectively, are having a tough time appointing Speakers for their Assemblies for MLAs in both the parties are more eager to have a ministerial berth.
In the successor state of Andhra Pradesh, the TD has stormed to power after a 10 year hiatus and in Telangana, the TRS has bagged the opportunity to form the very first government. But both the parties are in a fix now over picking an MLA for the Speaker’s post. In fact some of the MLAs have clearly told their party leaders that they want a ministerial position and not the Speaker’s position.
In the TD, senior MLAs Kodela Siva Prasada Rao, Kala Venkat Rao, Gollapalli Surya Rao, Ch. Ayyanna Patrudu and Dhoolipalla Narendra and other names are under consideration for Speaker’s post. In the TRS, Pocharam Srinivasa Reddy and Bajireddy Govardhan are being considered for it.
The TD has many senior MLAs to consider for Assembly speaker’s post but the TRS has just a handful of them.
The reason for not evincing much interest in being the Assembly Speaker is the prevailing sentiment that Assembly Speakers stand little chance of winning legislative elections. The latest example is present Assembly speaker Nadendla Manohar, who got defeated in the recent elections. In the past, former Assembly Speakers Yanamala Ramakrishnudu and K. Prathibha Bharathi were also defeated.
Former Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy, is a rare exception, who won in the 2009 Assembly elections from Pileru Assembly segment in Chittoor district, despite holding the post of Assembly Speaker.
Besides, the fact that as a Speaker there would be negligible scope to participate actively in politics, is also proving to be a deterrent. Hence, MLAs across both states are preferring a ministerial berth over the Assembly Speaker’s post.
