Hyderabad: Former Indian cricket captain Mohammad Azharuddin, who recently took oath as a minister in the Telangana Cabinet, has been assigned the portfolios of Minorities Welfare and Public Enterprises. The announcement was made through an official order issued by Chief Secretary K. Ramakrishna Rao on Tuesday.
The Public Enterprises department was previously handled by Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy himself, while the Minorities Welfare portfolio was under minister Adluri Laxman Kumar. With Azharuddin’s inclusion, the Telangana Cabinet now has 16 ministers, leaving room for two more appointments as the state’s constitutional limit allows for 18 members.
Azharuddin, who was inducted into the Cabinet on October 31, has been a prominent face for the Congress party in Telangana. His entry into the ministry is being widely viewed as a strategic political move ahead of the November 11 Jubilee Hills bypoll, where Muslim voters—numbering over one lakh—are expected to play a decisive role.
