Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy will reconstitute his Cabinet as all 24 ministers handed him their resignations on Thursday to facilitate the exercise aimed at giving a new look to the ministry ahead of 2024 elections.
The Chief Minister, who will reconstitute the Cabinet on April 11, is likely to retain 4-5 experienced leaders and for the remaining berths, pick new faces who have been waiting in the wings.
All the ministers tendered their resignations to the Chief Minister immediately after the cabinet meeting ended.
Briefing the media, outgoing Information and Public Relations Minister Perni Venkatramaiah said: "All 24 ministers of Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy government have resigned today. This is in accordance with the Chief Minister's wish to strengthen party machinery by assigning key responsibilities to experienced leaders to prepare the party for victory in 2024 Assembly elections. This decision of the Chief Minister has been welcomed and happily accepted by all the ministers."
Venkatramaiah said the Chief Minister had already made it clear while constituting the Cabinet in 2019 that there will be a new Cabinet after two-and-a-half years. "In fact, the ministers got some grace period," he said.
Another outgoing minister Kodali Nani said the Chief Minister hinted that some of the outgoing ministers will be continued while the services of the rest would be utilised for the party. Jagan Mohan Reddy, who is also the YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) chief, explained to the ministers that the purpose of the whole exercise is to bring the party to power again.
He wanted the ministers to leave it to him to decide where and how to use their services. The ministers unanimously agreed to this and tended their resignation.
Outgoing minister Botsa Satyanarayana said it was the prerogative of the Chief Minister and YSRCP chief to decide whom to retain and whom to drop. "It's the collective responsibility of all to ensure that party comes back to power. The Chief Minister will soon chalk out an action plan to take the government's schemes to people," he said.
He said while reconstituting the cabinet, Jagan Mohan Reddy will ensure regional and caste equations.
Meanwhile, arrangements are in full swing for the swearing in function of the new cabinet on April 11. The Chief Minister is expected to meet Governor Biswa Bhusan Harichandan and hand over the resignation letters of his cabinet colleagues.
The Chief Minister had Wednesday met the governor. During the 45-minute meeting, he is understood to have explained his plans to reconstitute the Cabinet.
The YSRCP stormed to power in 2019 with a landslide majority, bagging 151 seats in the 175-member Assembly.
Jagan Mohan Reddy had formed the Cabinet with 25 ministers. In 2020, two of them -- Pilli Subhash Chandra Bose and R. Mopidevi Venkataramana -- resigned after they were elected to Rajya Sabha. They were replaced by C.S. Venugopala Krishna and Seediri Appalaraju
Including the Chief Minister, the strength of the state cabinet stayed at 26, which is the maximum strength of the Council of Ministers.
However, the death of Mekapati Goutham Reddy, who was holding the industries, commerce and information technology portfolios, on February 21 from cardiac arrest, caused a vacancy.