Amid speculations of KTR's elevation, TRS state executive committee to meet on Sunday

Amid speculations that ChiefMinister K Chandrasekhar Rao might step down and make way forhis son K T Rama Rao to the state's top post, the executivecommittee of the ruling TRS would meet here on February 7 todiscuss various organisational matters.

The meeting would deliberate on matters includingappointment of party committees from village level to thestate level and election of its president, a TRS release saidon Friday.

State ministers, MLAs, MPs, MLCs, chairpersons ofZilla Parishads, Mayors and others have been invited for themeeting which would be held on February 7 afternoon, it said.

''Party membership renewal, appointments of the partycommittees from village level to the state level, election ofthe party president, party's annual day meeting on April 27and other institutional issues will be discussed at length,''the release said.

The announcement on the Sunday meeting has triggeredspeculation of a possible change of guard as some party MLAsand other senior leaders have openly batted from Rama Raotaking over as chief minister from his father.

Speaking at a function on January 21, in the presenceof Rama Rao, Deputy Speaker of the Legislative AssemblyT Padmarao Goud addressed him as ''the probable would-be ChiefMinister of the state'' and requested him to solve the issuesof railway workers.

''On behalf of the Assembly, on behalf of all of ushere, and on behalf of railway workers, I am conveying mycongratulations to the would-be Chief Minister,'' Goud hadsaid on January 21, amid applause during a programme of SouthCentral Railway Employees Sangh.

However, Rama Rao, popularly known as KTR, who was onthe stage did not react to the deputy speaker's comments.

Earlier, state Animal Husbandry Minister T SrinivasYadav asked what was wrong in KTR leading the state, when hisattention was drawn to the comments made by a few MLAs on theissue.

Party MLAs Shakil Aamir Mohammed and BajireddyGoverdhan had also spoken in favour of Rama Rao's possibleelevation to the top post.

Rama Rao, who is the Working President of TRS, isminister for industries, municipal administration and IT inthe state.

Though there was some talk in the past about the44-year-old taking over the reins from his father, he haddismissed it and it was, probably, the first time that someleaders had spoken in public about making him the CM.

The suave Rama Rao is known for hisdevelopment-oriented politics, especially in promotinginvestments in the growth of Hyderabad and other urban areas.

PTI SJR SA BNADMINISTRATOR BNADMINISTRATOR