YSR takes over in AP tomorrow

Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy, the man who spearheaded the Congress sweep of Andhra Pradesh to e nd nine years of TDP rule, will be sworn in as Ch...

Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy, the man who spearheaded the Congress sweep of Andhra Pradesh to e nd nine years of TDP rule, will be sworn in as Chief Minister on Friday afternoon at Lal Bahadur stadium in the city.

The swearing-in ceremony, planned for Thursday, was deferred by a day in view of counting of votes for the Lok Sabha elections.

At a meeting of the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) today, YSR was unanimously elected leader. He had earlier been cleared for the post by Congress president Sonia Gandhi.

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There are indications that some senior leaders will be sworn-in along with YSR and the Cabinet expanded later. The CM-designate reached Delhi for discussions with Sonia Gandhi and will return to Hyderabad on Thursday night.

Soon after the CLP meeting, YSR, accompanied by senior leaders, called on Governor Surjit Singh Barnala who in turn invited him to form the government.

Congress sources said that the election of the CLP leader was a ‘‘smooth affair’’ with PCC president D Srinivas, another aspirant for the CM’s post, proposing YSR’s name. It was seconded by former deputy chief minister Koneru Ranga Rao.

All those who addressed the meeting — Ghulam Nabi Azad, Shivraj Patil and Srinivas — acknowledged YSR’s ‘‘hard work’’ in returning the party to power and said he deserved to be CM.