Government Whip Kondru Murali Mohan, on Saturday, defended Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy's
decision to drop Dr. P Shankar Rao from his council of ministers.
Talking to media persons at the Congress Legislature Party Office, Kondru Murali Mohan said that Handlooms And Textiles Minister Shankar Rao was suspended from the Cabinet for violating the party discipline and causing damage to the party's image.
He said that Shankar Rao had levelled charges against Kiran Kumar Reddy and Home Minister Sabitha Indra Reddy despite warnings from the party High Command.
"Though the central leadership issued a stern warning, he never heeded to its words, and did not change his behaviour," Kondru said.
He said Shankar Rao must change his "arrogant attitude" at least now, and condemned his reported statement that he was sacked from the Cabinet as he hails from the Telangana region and belongs to the Scheduled Caste community.
Condemning Shankar Rao's accusation of the Congress as "anti-Dalit", he asked the former to explain what he did for the welfare of Dalits during his tenure as a Cabinet minister.
Speaking on the occasion, Primary Education Minister S Sailajanath condemned the Opposition parties for trying to give a caste twist to the sacking of a minister from the Cabinet.
Sailajanath said that the Chief Minister and the Congress had never showed any discrimination towards SC/ST communities in the Cabinet, and added that the allotment of portfolios did not involve any injustice to any community. (INN)