A forthright leader who called out Delhi coterie

A few days after Dr Marri Channa Reddy was sworn in as the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh for the second time on December 3, 1989, on his suggestion, I went to his Tarnaka residence to meet him. On seeing me, he asked me to draft a message from the CM to Indian Medical Association (IMA) on the occasion of its golden jubilee celebrations, which I did. ‘Incipient!’ was his instant observation of the draft, and he approved it without any changes.

Later, I was appointed as the Public Relations Officer to Chief Minister. His masterly comment ‘Incipient’ was a learning lesson in my life. In fact, every word that he pronounced, be it in delivering speech, conversing with media or visitors, or giving his points for inclusion in messages etc., was simply astounding and unparalleled. For instance, on his becoming APCC-I president, at a seminar organised by me through the National Information Services platform on June 3, 1989, he consciously, but cautiously, threw a challenge to the NTR government that, ‘Let us build up a strategy where every member of a family in the state can be uplifted in a manner that he or she can stand on their own feet and do away with the begging bowls. It is a challenge from our own party and we take it up in the coming elections and ask the people whether self-respect is good or begging is good.’ Dr Reddy was referring to the Rs 2-a-kg rice scheme.

The first paragraph of the 1989 election manifesto of Congress, referring to NTR’s subsidised rice scheme, made it clear that the Congress government, while continuing the scheme benefiting the vulnerable sections, would systematically “weed out bogus ration cards.” When the draft manifesto prepared by a three-member committee was shown to Channa Reddy, he instantaneously corrected in hardly 15 minutes and added 16 more points. His thought process was so clear, prompt, and qualitative that, without even lifting the (special) pen, he wrote them in quick succession. His handwritten manifesto is with me as precious souvenir.

There was Channa Reddy’s personal touch in every communication that had his signature. Responding to the congratulatory messages to him, on his assumption of office, he replied: “It is widely known fact that I have inherited an administration which is in shambles needing urgent, painstaking and understanding attention to set it work smoothly and usefully. I need your help.” He thanked Blitz Editor R K Karanjia profusely, in response to his congratulatory message: “Had Dr Reddy continued as Governor of Punjab, the situation there would have been different.” When I informed him of the demise of Darbara Singh, who was the Punjab CM during Channa Reddy tenure, he dictated a condolence message with a personal touch. Whenever he would address a public meeting, in his hour-long speech normally in either Telugu or English or Urdu, all fluently and extempore, Channa Reddy was in the habit of either explaining a policy framework or subtly narrating an anecdote. Once he said that Himayat Sagar was changed as Rajendra Nagar, when Dr Rajendra Prasad, as the first agricultural minister, came to the campus, as a guest to the Kidwai Cottage. Dr Ready’s style of functioning had always been unique.

Dr Reddy’s concern and preference to his people over his personal health even in adverse circumstances was incomparable. This he profoundly exhibited, a fortnight after the coastal belt was hit by a severe cyclone in May 1990. Despite the urgency for a medical check-up in USA, he deferred his departure, though his family members were already at the airport and about to check in. He stayed back to personally supervise the cyclone relief operations. It was Dr Channa Reddy, who first coined the word ‘National Calamity’ referring to the intensity of coastal belt cyclone.

Dr Channa Reddy had the first of its kind multi-sectoral and cost effective ‘Cyclone Reconstruction Project Report’ prepared by C Arjuna Rao, the Commissioner for Relief and Rehabilitation, and presented it to a World Bank team that visited Hyderabad. The team leader, George Russel, commended the report. Until he was admitted to the hospital for medical check-up in USA on June 7, 1990, he was absolutely engrossed in obtaining assistance, pursuing the matter with the Vice President of World Bank, Moin Qureshi, who in a record time of two weeks, sent a 14-member expert team that toured the state, which eventually resulted in obtaining a World Bank loan. Great, it was!!!

Only a few persons with ‘Right Attitude, Skill and Knowledge’ will understand, gauge, and know the ‘Deep Mind’ (weighing up the options, thinking from all angles, and trying to predict rational logical outcomes) of Dr Channa Reddy and his multifaceted knowledge. An exclusive interview to P Sainath, the then Deputy Editor and Foreign Editor of BLITZ, in my presence, on May 1, 1990, on completion of 150 days in office, in the Naxalite-dominated Siri Konda village (Nizamabad district) truly depict this. I very well remember the day for two reasons: First, the ‘Remote Area Development Programme (RADP)’ was launched on that day; secondly, before leaving for Siri Konda, Dr Channa Reddy ‘went out of the way’ to make a special effort to obtain clearance of my regular appointment file for the post of assistant director in information and public relations department from by Governor Krishna Kanth. He went to Raj Bhavan around 7 am to request him personally. That was his exemplary affection and commitment to his personal staff.

Characteristically, BLITZ carried his interview, prominently in a ‘Center Spread’ titled ‘Channa’s warning to Delhi Congress Coterie: Regional parties are born when national parties fail’, which created political tremors. Quoting Channa Reddy, BLITZ revealed that, “the worst enemies of the Congress are not the political opponents on the outside, but inside,” hinting at “the non-political coterie dominance”. It sowed doubts that ‘Channa Reddy would function with a “degree of independence of action.” He was always in favor of reviving and revitalising Congress party organisationally, focusing on the positive side. He said that the common man was not interested in ‘Isms or Ideologies’ but in development.

According to Dr Channa Reddy, “Regional Parties are the by-products of the malfunctioning of the National Parties”. His “Signals were complex and demand careful decoding.” His “Ire was not directed against his leader Rajiv Gandhi”, though he was annoyed with the influence and interference of ‘New Delhi’s Non-Political Congress Coterie,’ some of whom were not even born when Channa Reddy was active in politics. As far back as 1990 (35 years ago) itself, he strongly felt that, “the AICC Secretariat, and the AICC Leadership must take note of Modern Requirements.” “His political instincts and boldness are certainly remarkable” was how Sainath described Dr Channa Reddy.

Dr Channa Reddy was very clear on the ‘Danger of the Congress Splitting again then’ and on the speculations on his meeting with Sharad Pawar and Veerendra Patil (in Tirupathi, regarding sharing of River Waters, where I was present) that the Congress Chief Ministers would be asserting themselves visa-a-vis the party high command.

“Sharad Pawar, Veerendra Patil and myself, cannot really claim to belong to the same generation. But maybe we were all brought up in that same disciplined way,” said Channa Reddy. “Even when Mahatma Gandhi was there, dissidents opposed the Congress Tickets and other things. But still, Sardar Patel knew where he had to put his hand,” he observed.

‘An Agenda for the Development of Andhra Pradesh,’ a dummy book with the best of extempore speeches of Channa Reddy, transliterated, edited and compiled by me, was released by him in November 1990. Two decades later, senior High Court advocate Buggarapu Sitaramiah, a former MLA and an ardent admirer of Dr Channa Reddy, published it. Unfortunately, it was formally not released, but copies reached several admirers of Dr Channa Reddy effortlessly.