In an apparent bid to silence his critics, Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy, on Monday, inducted 3 more ministers into his Council.
Governor E S L Narasimhan administered the oath of office and secrecy to Kondru Murali Mohan, Gaddam Prasad Kumar and M Uttam Kumar Reddy, at Raj Bhavan, on Monday evening.
Of these 3 new faces, 2 hail from the Telangana region, while the other belongs to coastal Andhra.
Kondru Murali was the government Chief Whip, and represents Rajam constituency of Srikakulam district.
While Prasad Kumar represents Vikarabad constituency, Uttam Kumar is the Huzurnagar MLA.
With their induction, the strength of the state Cabinet has increased to 41, including the Chief Minister.
This is the second expansion in Kiran Kumar Reddy's Cabinet, in less than a month. On 19 January, 2 PRP legislators - Ganta Srinivas Rao and C Ramchandraiah - were inducted into the Cabinet. However, one minister, Dr. P Shankar Rao, was also dropped from the Cabinet on the same day.
Following criticism and pressure from the MLAs, the Chief Minister on Sunday received approval from the Congress High Command for the expansion. (INN)