Should I submit my resignation: Rosaiah

Chief Minister K Rosaiah on Monday lashed out at hecklers, purportedly belonging to the Kadapa MP Y S Jaganmohan Reddy's brigade, at Puttaparthy airport in Anantapur district when he went there to receive Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

Mr Rosaiah, who was visibly angry, expressed his resentment over the pro-Jagan activists holding demonstration against him at the airport. The pro-Jagan men also raised slogans against the Mr Rosaiah, who is alleged to have ignored a leader's entry into the airport.

The Chief Minister lost his cool and said that he would resign. “If I submit my resignation to post, will you cool down,” the visibly peeved Chief Minister asked the activists. However, the activists retorted and asked him why he had not respecting their district in-charge and also asked him why he was losing his cool. The activists said the Chief Minister should not ignore their leader and should be treated in respectful manner. 

The Chief Minister is scheduled to return to the city and then fly to New Delhi on Tuesday in the morning. Mr Rosaiah is visiting New Delhi on his own and that there was no invitation from the AP in-charge Veerappa Moily to the former. It may be recalled that Sakshi television channel had telecast an 'item' against Congress president Sonia Gandhi which the Congress circles protested and raised their objections against the channel.

In this background, the Chief Minister’s visit to New Delhi assumes importance. He is expected to brief the party High Command over the entire episode. According to political pundits, the visit assumes importance amid speculation that Mr Rosaiah may offer to step down to enable the leadership to choose his successor, if it believes that a new leader can effectively tackle the belligerent YS Jaganmohan Reddy and the situation likely to emerge from the Srikrishna Committee report on the demand for separate statehood to Telangana.

If the High Command initiates action against Mr Jaganmohan Reddy, his supporters would destabilise the Rosaiah government, the sources said. If the High Command expels Mr Jaganmohan Reddy from the party as part of disciplinary action, he would get the sympathy of people and improve his chances in the next Assembly elections.