HYDERABAD: The ruling TRS party requires only one more Congress MLA to defect to formalise the merger of the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) into the TRS Legislature Party (TRSLP). With the imminent resignation of N Uttam Kumar Reddy as Huzurnagar MLA, the Congress will have only 18 seats in the Assembly. Reddy will have to resign within 14 days as he recently won as MP from Nalgonda in the Lok Sabha polls.
Officials sources in the Assembly Secretariat said the Lok Sabha polls were published in the Gazette on May 25, so the 14-day period would have begun from then. Things will indeed get easier for TRS with Reddy’s departure from the Assembly. The ruling party needs the defection of two-third of total MLAs belonging to any party for the merger to be legal and official.
As Congress had won 19 seats, the two-third mark was at 13. With only 18 seats after Reddy’s resignation, this number would become 12. As many as 11 MLAs from Congress have already made the jump to TRS. All it would take for the Congress to be stripped of its Opposition status in the House would the defection of one more MLA.
Once, or if, this merger takes place, Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao will look to expand his Cabinet. He may include in it former Congress leader and current Maheshwaram MLA P Sabitha Indra Reddy. Sources said two members from the Council might also find a place in Rao’s Cabinet. He had earlier hinted two women would be inducted as well.
One more needed
With Uttam Kumar Reddy’s resignation, Congress will have only 18 MLAs in the Assembly. However, 11 have already defected. Only one more would have to defect for the merger of CLP and TRSLP