Madhusudanachari Elected Unopposed as Telangana Speaker; Governor Announces ₹1 Lakh Crore for Welfare Schemes

Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) MLA S Madhusudanachari was unanimously elected the first Speaker of the 119-member Assembly of Telangana on Tuesday. 

Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao (KCR) on Monday worked with all other parties in the House for unopposed election of Madhusudanachari to the Speaker's post. Protem Speaker K Jana Reddy announced the election and administered the oath of office to the Speaker.

Madhusudanachari was elected to the Assembly from Bhupalapalli in Warangal district. He is a member of TRS since its inception in 2001 and is a close aide of KCR.

Soon after Madhusudanachari took charge as Speaker, KCR and other MLAs in the House congratulated him. Members of the Assembly - Etela Rajender, T Harish Rao, T Rajaiah, Pocharam Srinivasa Reddy - and others recalled their association with the newly elected Speaker.

While congratulating the new Speaker, KCR recalled the TRS-led movement and the supporting role played by Madhusudanachari. An activist has been elected as the Speaker of Telangana Assembly, which is a matter of delight, the Chief Minister pointed out. KCR also thanked all the parties for electing the Speaker unanimously.

Before joining TRS, Madhusudanachari was with the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) since 1982 and served as an MLA between 1994 and 1999. After TDP's reins went to the hands of N Chandrababu Naidu, Madhusudanachari moved to NTR-TDP of Lakshmi Parvati, widow of NT Rama Rao.

Replying to the members' congratulatory speeches, Madhusudanachari vowed to serve the post in an unbiased and apolitical manner. He thanked the House for electing him as Speaker. The House should behave and work in an ideal way for the future generations of the state, he added.

It is also understood that Padma Devender Reddy of TRS is likely to be elected unopposed as Deputy Speaker of Telangana Assembly.

Meanwhile, state Governor ESL Narasimhan has announed ₹1 lakh crore for welfare programmes in the state, to be implemented in a span of five years. The Governor revealed this while addressing a joint session of the state Assembly and Council on Wednesday.