Nearly 30 months after launching his party with much fanfare, Praja Rajyam chief Chiranjeevi on Sunday announced its merger with Congress, which is trying to counter the possible threat posed by Y S Jaganmohan Reddy in Andhra Pradesh.
According to the National Democratic Alliance sources, the new government may allot five to six ministerial berths to the allies Janasena and Bharatiya Janata Party.
The Praja Rajyam Party leader made his debut as MLA on Thursday when he got up to deliver a customary speech to congratulate Kiran Kumar Reddy of Congress on his election as the Speaker, but ended up making a memorable and hard-hitting speech ruing the wastage of public money and precious time of the assembly on non-serious issues.
If the BJP gets only 200 seats and wants to remain in power, Modi will have to make way -- either for a proxy of his choice, or for an internal rival, predicts Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay.
All India Congress president Sonia Gandhi has invited Praja Rajyam Party president and Tirupati Member of Legislative Assembly Chiranjeevi to New Delhi to meet her anytime between August 7 and 10 to formally take primary membership of the Congress party.
Union Minister K Chiranjeevi's youngest brother K Kalyan Kumar, alias Pavan Kalyan, is all set to launch his own political party IN Hyderabad on Friday.
The Praja Rajyam Party will officially merge with the Congress on August 20, according to PRP president Chiranjeevi. "We decided to officially merge Praja Rajyam with Congress on August 20, the birth anniversary of Rajeev Gandhi. On August 20 and 21, senior party leaders will take Congress party membership at Gandhi Bhavan," Chiranjeevi said. Chiranjeevi was earlier scheduled to meet All India Congress Committee chief Sonia Gandhi between August 7 and August 10.
In an unprecedented action in state legislature history, Andhra Pradesh Assembly Speaker Nadendla Manohar on Friday night disqualified 16 MLAs of ruling Congress who had voted against the party government during a no-trust motion in December last year sailing with expelled Congress leader Y S Jaganmohan Reddy.
Seeking to put its house in order in Andhra Pradesh, the Congress on Monday appointed senior state minister Botsa Satyanarayana as Pradesh Congress Committee president.
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy on Tuesday left for Delhi, where he is expected to meet Congress president Sonia Gandhi and possibly discuss an expansion of his cabinet and Telangana, among other issues. There has been speculation that the chief minister would induct only two legislators of erstwhile Praja Rajyam Party into his cabinet. It is speculated that the cabinet re-jig may take place anytime between January 21 and 28.
Praja Rajyam Party President K Chiranjeevi will campaign on Thursday for the Congress party in the by-election to Bangarupalem assembly constituency in Karnataka.
The Telangana Rashtriya Samiti, spearheading the Telangana statehood movement, rejected a fresh appeal by Home Minister P Chidambaram to participate in Thursday's meeting to discuss the Justice Srikrishna report, even as Congress held hectic parleys with its leaders from Andhra Pradesh on ways to deal with the situation.
It was supposed to be a momentous day for the ruling Congress in Andhra Pradesh with formalities related to the merger of Praja Rajyam Party getting completed on Monday.
More than 30 legislators of Telangana region belonging to the TRS, Congress, Telugu Desam Party and Praja Rajyam Party have announced their resignation.
With Andhra Pradesh assembly Speaker Nadendla Manohar making a formal announcement in the House on Monday accepting the merger of Praja Rajyam Party with the Congress, the chapter of the Chiranjeevi-led party has come to an end in the political history of the state.
Megastar Chiranjeevi is likely to get elevated soon to the Rajya Sabha from a member of the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly. His candidature is almost certain for one of the four seats that the ruling Congress can win in the biennial elections to the Upper House of Parliament from the state, slated for March 30. The Congress, as part of his Praja Rajyam Party's merger deal last year, promised to induct Chiranjeevi into the Union Cabinet by nominating him to Rajya Sabha.
Praja Rajyam Party president K Chiranjeevi on Wednesday requested the Maharashtra government to extend an invitation to Andhra Pradesh for a dialogue on the controversial Babhli irrigation project and allow an all-party delegation from the state to inspect the site.
A new government has emerged in Andhra Pradesh with the induction of two legislators of the Praja Rajyam Party into the N Kiran Kumar Reddy Cabinet in Hyderabad on Thursday. State Governor E S L Narasimhan administered the oath of office and secrecy to Ganta Srinivasa Rao, a member of the legislative assembly, and C Ramachandraiah, a member of the legislative council, at a brief function in the Raj Bhavan.
Telugu Desam Party president Chandrababu Naidu's convoy was on Saturday allegedly stoned by supporters of YSR Congress party when he was addressing a road show as part of the by-election campaign at Lingala in Kadapa district.
Praja Rajyam Party chief and film star Chiranjeevi is to meet Congress chief Sonia Gandhi on Monday afternoon to discuss the merger arrangements between the two parties.
A late night telephone call from Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy to Praja Rajyam Party president K Chiranjeevi has led to wide-spread speculation that his party legislators might be inducted into the Congress ministry to checkmate rebel Member of Parliament Y S Jaganmohan Reddy. The call from the chief minister, who is currently camping in New Delhi, to the PRP president indicated that the high command was in no mood to be accommodative.
Telangana supporters continued to target the Telugu film shooting for the second consecutive day on Wednesday.
Film star-turned-politician and Praja Rajyam Party chief Chiranjeevi on Thursday announced his resignation from the state assembly in protest against the decision of the Central government to start the process for the formation of Telangana state by bifurcating Andhra Pradesh.
In a major political development, Praja Rajyam Party chief and Telugu superstar Chiranjeevi resigned from the state assembly on Thursday, in a bid to throw his weight for a united Andhra Pradesh.
The Andhra Pradesh legislative assembly was adjourned on Tuesday with out transacting any business as members of Telangana Rashtra Samiti stalled the proceedings demanding that the House should adopt a resolution on formation of a spereate Telangana state.
With the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Praja Rajyam Party clamouring to join hands with the Telangana Rashtra Samiti over the demand for a separate state, pressure is mounting on Congress president Sonia Gandhi to initiate steps to deal with the issue immediately. The growing unrest within the party, especially among the leaders of Telangana region, came to the fore on Sunday with Congress Working Committee member G Venkat Swamy openly supporting the demand for Telangana.
Praja Rajyam Party president K Chiranjeevi has totally ruled out the question of merging his 15-month-old outfit with the ruling Congress in Andhra Pradesh.
Praja Rajyam Party chief Chiranjeevi today strongly refuted reports that his party has merged with Congress, saying it was only a "media creation".
As many as 16 Congress MLAs backing YSR Congress leader Y S Jaganmohan Reddy cross-voted in favour of the no-confidence motion against Kiran Reddy government, which survived because of the support from Praja Rajyam Party and Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen.
Praja Rajyam Party chief Chiranjeevi is expected to meet Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Saturday, raising hopes of an alliance between the two parties in the forthcoming Rajya Sabha polls in Andhra Pradesh.
The party is over at least for those who were hoping for a long political innings for Praja Rajyam, which had been launched with the ambitious goal of social justice.
Telangana Rashtra Samiti President K Chandrasekhar Rao has ruled out the possibility of his party merging with the Congress on Monday. After the merger of Telgu superstar Chiranjeevi's Praja Rajyam Party with the Congress on Sunday, rumours were abuzz that TRS will do the same.
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy and Praja Rajyam Party chief K Chiranjeevi on Thursday met Governor E S L Narasimhan separately, amidst the speculation that the state is heading for President's rule.
As the relay hunger strike by the legislators from the Telangana region continued on third day on Monday, demanding the Centre to start the process of formation of separate state, the legislators from Andhra and Rayalseema regions were becoming active once again to bring counter pressure on the Central government.
The Telugu Desam Party-led Grand Alliance in Andhra Pradesh got a major boost on Saturday with the Telangana Rashtra Samiti formally announcing its decision to join the alliance. The TRS had been holding political negotiations with both the Grand Alliance and Chiranjeevi's Praja Rajyam Party.TRS chief K Chandrasekhara Rao, accompanied by other party leaders, met TDP supremo N Chandrababu Naidu today afternoon and formally joined the alliance.
Fast-unto-death by Congress Member of Parliament L Rajagopal and several other leaders, pressing for a unified Andhra Pradesh continued on Wednesday even as Chiranjeevi-led Praja Rajyam Party came under pressure from its MLAs to end its support for a separate Telangana.
Even as the film star turned politician Chiranjeevi was worried over getting an electoral symbol allotted by the Election Commission, his Praja Rajyam party got a shot in the arm on Thursday with two legislators of Telugu Desam party including the party general secretary joining the PRP.
Praja Rajyam Party president K Chiranjeevi has appealed to his party's Members of Legislative Assembly to withdraw their resignations, after eleven of his 18 party legislators quit their assembly membership to protest the Centre's decision to carve out a separate Telangana state. The filmstar-turned politician convened an emergency meeting with the party legislators on Thursday night and said it was not proper for them to quit their posts in haste.
Praja Rajyam Party chief K Chiranjeevi on Tuesday night claimed that people of Andhra Pradesh were longing to see him as state chief minister in real life rather than in reel life.
The talks between the ruling Congress party and the Praja Rajyam Party for a tie-up for the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation on Monday suffered a major setback.
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