Cracks appear in Reddy fortress

Bellary-Jan 8/2011

Cracks appeared in the Reddy camp with revenue minister G.
Karunakar Reddy distancing himself from the opera from the operations of Obulapuram Mining Company (OMC) at a time when Opposition leaders stepped up their demand for ouster of the mine owners-cum-ministers in the wake of a report submitted by Supreme Courtappointed Central Empowered Committee (CEC).
Many senior Congress leaders maintained that yet another illegal mining scam involving the Reddy brothers would come in handy for the UPA government to blunt the attack by BJP leaders on the issue of corruption and scam in alloca tion of 2G spectrum.




Fissures seem to have appeared in the powerful political family of the Reddy brothers of Bellary when the Opposition is clamouring for their resignation from the state Cabinet.
The Reddy brothers are facing the heat after the Supreme Court constituted Central Empowered Committee (CEC) recommended cancellation of four mining fields operated by their family firm, the Obulapuram Mining Company.

Sources said that some members of the family circle were unhappy at the ‘aggression’ of the younger brother-cum-master strategist of the Reddy troika— G. Janardhan Reddy.

Big brother and state revenue minister G. Karunakar Reddy’s public statement on Saturday that he had no business links with the OMC has given room for suspicion that “all is not well” in the family.

The Reddy brothers’ lieutenant turned health minister B. Sriramulu, who is often called ‘fourth Reddy,’ too appears to have distanced himself from the OMC affairs.

Mr Sriramulu stayed away from a press conference called by Mr G. Janardhan Reddy on Friday at his home-office ‘Kuteeram,’ raising eyebrows.

On other hand, analysts also suspect that it is a political gameplan of Reddy camp to retain both Mr Karunakar Reddy and Mr Sriramulu in the Cabinet in case the party is forced to heed the Opposition call.

“If the SC approves the CEC report a situation may arise when the Chief Minister may ask for their resig

nation,” said a source. “That is why they have started distancing themselves from the OMC affairs.” Mr Karunakar Reddy distanced himself from the charges made against his family firm and said he had no relation with OMC and or its affairs. “I made it clear in writing in affidavits filed with the Election Commission of India,” he said. “The Opposition party’s demand for my resignation is foolish and politically immature.” However, certain documents submitted by the OMC to Indian Bureau of Mines in 2004 say that Mr Karunakar Reddy was a member of the board of directors.
The defeat in the recent local bodies’ polls has worried Mr Karunakar Reddy, Mr Somashekhar Reddy and Mr Sriramulu that their political clout might be diminishing.

Meanwhile, Mr Karunakar Reddy also defended the `clean business’ of OMC before the media.