If the speculations doing rounds in the Andhra political circles in New Delhi are to be believed, Telugu Desam Party MP from Nellore Vemireddy Prabhakar Reddy may be inducted into the Union cabinet headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the forthcoming expansion.
The TDP has an alliance with the Bharatiya Janata Party and Jana Sena Party in Andhra Pradesh.
While all three parties share power in the state, only TDP and BJP are part of the ruling dispensation at the Centre. There is no representation for Jana Sena Party in the Union cabinet till now.
In this backdrop, political buzz in Nellore suggests that Vemireddy Prabhakar Reddy, could be the state’s third Union minister.
Vemireddy, a prominent industrialist, earlier served as a Rajya Sabha MP from the YSR Congress Party and was later nominated as the party’s Lok Sabha candidate.
However, differences with YSRCP chief Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy over assembly ticket allocations reportedly led to a split. He subsequently quit the YSRCP along with his wife Prasanthi Reddy and joined the TDP.
In the 2024 elections, the TDP fielded him from Nellore Lok Sabha constituency, while Prasanthi Reddy was given the assembly ticket, and both emerged victorious.
According to sources, there is no major political hurdle for the Prime Minister in inducting Vemireddy into the Cabinet.
However, discussions are reportedly centred on whether Civil Aviation Minister Kinjarapu Ram Mohan Naidu, who has been facing criticism in the wake of the recent IndiGo Airlines crisis, could be replaced, making way for Vemireddy.
While there is no official confirmation, the speculation has gained traction due to Vemireddy’s financial clout, political influence in Nellore, and strategic importance within the TDP.
The possible elevation of Vemireddy, while Jana Sena continues without a representation in the Union cabinet, could also have implications for alliance dynamics.
Political observers say the BJP may be balancing caste, regional, and alliance considerations in the proposed expansion.