HYDERABAD: It went as per the script. Kiran Kumar Reddy survived the no-confidence motion but not without high drama and loud protests from TDP members. After the vote in the very late hours of Monday at the end of a marathon debate on the motion moved by the TDP, the Congress score card was 160, while the Opposition tally stood at 122. Three MLAs abstained, while one MLA's vote was kept as 'neutral.' As per the Speaker's orders the voting finally began at 1 am and those supporting the motion stood up first as the assembly staff counted their numbers. Sixteen Congress MLAs loyal to Jagan along with rebel PRP MLA Sobha Nagi Reddy and rebel TDP MLA Balanagi Reddy along with lone YSR Congress MLA Y S Vijayamma voted in favour of the motion. One of Jagan loyalist MLAs Ravi (Putalapattu), hailing from CM's home district of Chittoor, abstained from the voting. Later, those supporting the Kiran government stood up as the assembly staff counted them as well.
Musheerabad MLA Manemma because of her old age sat in her chair. Chittebbai (TDP) and Chennamaneni Ramesh (TRS) abstained, while the vote of Somarapu Satyanarayana, who recently joined TRS, is to be decided by the speaker though he voted in support of the motion. The challenge posed by Jagan loyalist MLAs to Kiran's 'minority' government despite intense lobbying to bring them back into the Congress fold could be indicative of the tough days ahead of the beleaguered CM.
The no-confidence motion in fact exposed the vulnerability of the Congress government -- so much so that it came to a situation where it became very clear that it was actually running with the support of MLAs belonging to Chiranjeevi's Prajarajyam Party and the Majlis party. It was Chiranjeevi and Akbaruddin Owaisi who saved the blushes for the Kiran government.
If the final result at the no-confidence vote was to be taken into account, the Congress has only 137 members whereas the combined Opposition strength was 122.
"If one were to take out the combined strength of PRP and MIM (24 MLAs) and add it to the Opposition tally, it would almost reach the magical 150-mark which is sufficient to unseat the Kiran government. It was a close shave for the CM. Despite his bravado, the CM must be feeling the jitters," a senior analyst pointed out.
Though Kiran Kumar Reddy can breathe easy for now having overcome the no-trust vote, the challenge that lies ahead of him to steer the Congress party and his government is going to be massive.
The fact that 18 Jagan loyalist MLAs refused to take the bait and fall for Congress overtures should be a major headache for Kiran. That the pro-Jagan MLAs defied the Congress whip and voted in favour of the no-trust vote does not augur well for the Congress and the CM. It remains to be seen whether the Congress would recommend disqualification of these-
MLAs. Kiran in his concluding remarks said his government is pro-farmer and observed that the spurt in farmer suicides was because of their failure to repay bank loans. Even as he countered Chandrababu Naidu's charges, Kiran came across as a man who was restless - he kept wiping the sweat from his forehead. As if these worries were not enough, Kiran cannot wish away Chiranjeevi, who has emerged stronger and is out to seek his pound of flesh for his MLAs. The same can be expected of MIM, which voted against the trust vote, demanding due share in key positions.
Musheerabad MLA Manemma because of her old age sat in her chair. Chittebbai (TDP) and Chennamaneni Ramesh (TRS) abstained, while the vote of Somarapu Satyanarayana, who recently joined TRS, is to be decided by the speaker though he voted in support of the motion. The challenge posed by Jagan loyalist MLAs to Kiran's 'minority' government despite intense lobbying to bring them back into the Congress fold could be indicative of the tough days ahead of the beleaguered CM.
The no-confidence motion in fact exposed the vulnerability of the Congress government -- so much so that it came to a situation where it became very clear that it was actually running with the support of MLAs belonging to Chiranjeevi's Prajarajyam Party and the Majlis party. It was Chiranjeevi and Akbaruddin Owaisi who saved the blushes for the Kiran government.
If the final result at the no-confidence vote was to be taken into account, the Congress has only 137 members whereas the combined Opposition strength was 122.
"If one were to take out the combined strength of PRP and MIM (24 MLAs) and add it to the Opposition tally, it would almost reach the magical 150-mark which is sufficient to unseat the Kiran government. It was a close shave for the CM. Despite his bravado, the CM must be feeling the jitters," a senior analyst pointed out.
Though Kiran Kumar Reddy can breathe easy for now having overcome the no-trust vote, the challenge that lies ahead of him to steer the Congress party and his government is going to be massive.
The fact that 18 Jagan loyalist MLAs refused to take the bait and fall for Congress overtures should be a major headache for Kiran. That the pro-Jagan MLAs defied the Congress whip and voted in favour of the no-trust vote does not augur well for the Congress and the CM. It remains to be seen whether the Congress would recommend disqualification of these-
MLAs. Kiran in his concluding remarks said his government is pro-farmer and observed that the spurt in farmer suicides was because of their failure to repay bank loans. Even as he countered Chandrababu Naidu's charges, Kiran came across as a man who was restless - he kept wiping the sweat from his forehead. As if these worries were not enough, Kiran cannot wish away Chiranjeevi, who has emerged stronger and is out to seek his pound of flesh for his MLAs. The same can be expected of MIM, which voted against the trust vote, demanding due share in key positions.