Naidu postpones cabinet meeting, CS seeks EC nod

Vijayawada: The bureaucrats in the state seem to be caught between chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu and chief secretary L V Subrahmanyam over the proposed cabinet meeting.
The officers are busy reading the model code of conduct booklets that were supplied to them by the state chief electoral officer (CEO). The copies of the model code of conduct were circulated for the second time by the CEO, a fortnight ago when Chandrababu Naidu called for review meetings after elections were held to the assembly and Lok Sabha on April 11.
Again, on Tuesday, copies of the model code of conduct were circulated to all the officers as the CMO had sent communication informing the proposed cabinet meeting for May 10. However, the cabinet meeting was postponed to May 14 as the chief secretary wanted to seek clearance from the Election Commission.
Chandrababu Naidu said he would hold the cabinet meeting challenging the EC orders. He questioned the EC for allowing Prime Minister Narendra Modi holding the cabinet meeting and preventing him from doing so in Andhra Pradesh.
In continuing his fight against the EC, he has called for the cabinet meeting and sent communication to the chief secretary along with the agenda. The agenda included Fani cyclone relief, drinking water problem in the state, prevailing drought conditions and implementation of MNREGS.
The chief secretary, on receiving the agenda, held consultations with the CEO and other senior officials on the model code of conduct and has finally decided to send the proposal to the EC for its clearance. The chief secretary had also reportedly sought reports from the departments concerned on the agenda and the need for holding cabinet meeting.
Meanwhile, the CMO has sent a fresh communication to the chief secretary postponing the cabinet meeting to May 14. The CMO, however, retained the agenda for the cabinet meeting and requested the CS to communicate the same to the officials. The postponement has come as a relief to the officials who were finding it tough to decide between the CM and the chief secretary.