Hyderabad: Andhra Pradesh Chandrababu Naidu conducts routine appraisal of his council of ministers, including himself, from time to time, ranking them on the basis of their performance.
However, the latest assessment chart released by Naidu in Thursday’s cabinet meeting has seemingly led to some discontent in ally JanaSena Party’s camp, again.
According to the rankings, the criteria for which is clearance of official files, Naidu is in the sixth position and his son, Telugu Desam Party scion Nara Lokesh, is in the eighth. But the placement of JSP chief and Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan at the tenth spot in the 25-minister council—two notches below Lokesh—is being viewed by JSP leaders as another slight to their leader.
Many within the JSP claim that Kalyan is “the best minister in the council”. The deputy chief minister was not present during Thursday’s cabinet meeting as he was on sick leave due to fever and spondylitis.
This row comes after the TDP and JSP sparred last month over who Naidu’s successor in the chief minister’s seat would be. The demand to name Lokesh the second deputy chief minister had suddenly gained ground within the TDP, with JSP leaders retorting and expressing their wish to see Kalyan become the next chief minister.
But then a TDP minister T.G. Bharath, in the presence of the father-son duo at a business meet at Zurich ahead of the World Economic Forum in Davos, had said that Lokesh would be the future chief minister, “whether some people like it or not”.
With political tempers rising between the two alliance partners, both party chiefs had put a lid on the succession matter for the moment by strictly instructing their leaders and cadres to not speak about it anymore. But the ministerial rankings have now stirred up another row.
The Telugu film star-turned-politician holds the Panchayati Raj, rural development, rural water supply, forests and environment and science and technology portfolios in the Andhra Pradesh government.
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‘Kalyan’s departments faring better’
“Be it corruption-free administration, use of funds, postings or transfers, Kalyan’s departments have been the most transparent and efficient, and faring much better than others. Our leader has gained a grip over governance. Good roads are being laid in rural areas, which could not be accomplished during the TDP’s previous term, too,” JSP leader Murthy Yadav told ThePrint.
Yadav, a JSP corporator in Visakhapatnam, also questioned the usage of clearance of files as the single parameter of evaluation. “For example, the environment and forests department, led by Kalyan garu, oversees sensitive ecological matters, which need time-consuming assessment for proper decisions. They often require consultations with central agencies. How can files be expected to be cleared overnight without thorough scrutiny?”
A JSP leader, who did not wish to be named, wondered if “deputy chief minister Kalyan’s ranking, which is lower than Lokesh, was meant to denigrate and demoralise” their leader. “For the simple reason that we are partners in a coalition government, it is advisable that such aspects are thoroughly thought over. If it was only the TDP in power, nobody would have had any objection. They could have then ranked their ministers in any order they liked,” the district-level leader said.
Sensing the displeasure that his rankings caused in JSP, and within the TDP too, Naidu took to X Friday to say that the ranks released, according to file clearance, are not meant to project anyone as inferior or superior.
“Our intention is to create team spirit, a good competitive environment through timely reviews. Ranks based on file clearance is part of that effort,” the chief minister wrote.
“I too need to improve my performance, and thereby my rank. My colleagues and I are working with the ‘people first approach to regain our footing, and make Andhra Pradesh a pioneer in development and growth,” he added.
ప్రజలు అపారమైన నమ్మకంతో 2024 ఎన్నికల్లో 93 స్ట్రైక్ రేట్ తో చారిత్రాత్మక తీర్పును ఇచ్చి గెలిపించారు. వారి ఆశల్ని, ఆకాంక్షల్ని నెరవేర్చేందుకు తొలిరోజు, తొలిగంట నుంచి ప్రయత్నం చేస్తున్నాం. గత ప్రభుత్వ పాలనలో విధ్వంసమైన వ్యవస్థలను గాడిలో పెట్టేందుకు శాయశక్తులా కష్టపడుతున్నాం.… pic.twitter.com/sRpCrO9Xdy
— N Chandrababu Naidu (@ncbn) February 7, 2025
‘Can’t take offence to everything’
According to Ajaya Vemulapati, head of JSP’s conflict management committee and chairman of Andhra Pradesh Township and Infrastructure Development Corporation, such rankings have been a feature of Naidu’s governance for a long time.
“We are not reading much into this. We cannot be taking offence to everything. Anyhow, the rankings are based on a stated, tangible criterion. Why fuss over it when the CM as the leader of the government is also assessed?” Vemulapati, who is also the party’s national spokesperson, said. “JSP wants the government and the coalition to function smoothly.”
The party’s official stance seems to be in line with Kalyan’s statement last month, addressing the succession row, to ease tensions within the coalition.
In an open letter, Kalyan had appealed to his party leaders to avoid unnecessary disputes. He had advised JSP workers and leaders to remain focused on the larger mission of development and public welfare.
Kalyan, whose party has 21 MLAs and two MPs, had reiterated his resolve to focus on public service instead of political power. “I have never pursued politics for positions of power and will not do so in the future. My goal has always been to support those in need, develop my homeland, and contribute to the betterment of society.”
Though Kalyan is in the tenth position, the other two JSP ministers—Kandula Durgesh, who oversees tourism, culture and cinematography, and Nadendla Manohar, the minister for food, civil supplies and consumer affairs—fared well, securing second and fourth positions, respectively.
The Bharatiya Janata Party’s lone minister, Satya Kumar, who heads health, family welfare and medical education, is at the seventh spot.
Senior TDP leader Nasyam Mohammed Farook, who heads law & justice and minority welfare, has bagged the top spot, while the party’s minister for labour, factories, boilers & insurance medical services, Vasamsetti Subhash, is in the last position.
While Lokesh is the minister for human resources development, IT, electronics & communication, and real time governance, Naidu looks after general administration department, law and order, public enterprises and other portfolios not allocated to other ministers.
(Edited by Mannat Chugh)
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