HYDERABAD: In what has come as a surprise ahead of the Huzurabad bypoll, Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan has, for the last 10 days, been holding back the file relating to the nomination of TRS leader P Kaushik Reddy to the Telangana Legislative Council under the Governor’s quota.
The State Cabinet cleared Kaushik Reddy’s name at its meeting on August 1 and sent the file to the Governor the very next day. Even though it is 10 days now, the Governor is yet to act on it.
Official sources state that as per convention, the Governor cannot return a file approved by the State Cabinet but she can hold back the file for any number of days. Alleging that there were cases against Kaushik Reddy, the BJP had demanded that he cannot be sent to the Council under the Governor’s quota. In the past, when the State nominated popular singer Goreti Venkanna to the Legislative Council under the Governor’s quota, assent was given immediately.
But when it came to Kaushik Reddy’s nomination, the file remained stuck in Raj Bhavan. The Governor, on Wednesday, met Union Home Minister Amit Shah in Delhi and discussed the developments in the State and it remains to be seen if she would clear the file after returning to Hyderabad. Kaushik Reddy is a leader from Huzurabad, who recently switched his loyalties from the Congress to the TRS.