HYDERABAD: Two-time Congress MLA Gaddam Prasad Kumar, hailing from Vikarabad, is all set to be elected Telangana Legislative Assembly Speaker with all parties, except for the BJP, assuring support to him. The BRS, AIMIM and CPI have agreed to support the candidature of the Congress nominee, indicating that the Speaker elections, slated for December 14 if needed, would be unanimous. On Wednesday, Prasad Kumar filed his nomination papers in the presence of Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy, Deputy Chief Minister Bhatti Vikramarka, ministers, as well as BRS working president KT Rama Rao, former minister T Harish Rao and CPI MLA Kunamneni Sambasiva Rao.
Conspicuous by their absence were BJP MLAs who have been alleging violation of rules in the appointment of AIMIM MLA Akbaruddin Owaisi as the pro-tem Speaker. Prasad Kumar has the support of all the 64 MLAs of the Congress, 39 BRS legislators, seven AIMIM members and the lone CPI MLA. The Congress nominee, hailing from a Dalit background, had served as a minister in the regimes of former chief ministers YS Rajasekhara Reddy and N Kiran Kumar Reddy.
Set for a facelift
Meanwhile, Revanth inspected the Assembly and Council building premises and revealed plans for a facelift to the historic structures before the next Assembly session, on the lines of Vijay Chowk near Parliament.