Union defence minister A.K. Antony, a member of the Congress core committee, unexpectedly turned up in the city on Monday, to ask Praja Rajyam chief Chiranjeevi for “long-term” support for the ruling party.
The development comes soon after ministers in the Kiran Kumar Reddy government challenged the Jagan Mohan Reddy camp, which flaunted 25 MLAs in New Delhi, to move a no-confidence motion against it.
The Congress is learnt to have offered Mr Chiranjeevi’s party four berths in the state Cabinet and a Rajya Sabha seat in return for its support.
There were also rumours of the Praja Rajyam’s imminent merger with the Congress. These rumours had it that Mr Chiranjeevi would be asked to lead the party in Andhra Pradesh.
Mr Anthony arrived by a special flight from New Delhi and drove straight to Mr Chiranjeevi’s residence in Jubilee Hills accompanied by APCC president D. Srinivas and conveyed a special message from the Congress president Sonia Gandhi, and an invitation to the PR chief to New Delhi for further talks to “further strengthen the bond friendship between two parties.”
Mr Chiranjeevi, in principle, accepted the invitation and will convey the date of visit to New Delhi to Congress high command after consulting party leaders and MLAs on Tuesday. “The date will be announced soon,” said the party spokesperson, Mr C. Ramachandriah.