Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao and his Andhra Pradesh counterpart YS Jagan Mohan Reddy met each other on Sunday, November 21, at Telangana Assembly Speaker Pocharam Srinivas Reddy's granddaughter's wedding in Hyderabad. Pocharam's granddaughter, Snighda Reddy, was married to Officer on Special Duty (OSD) Krishna Mohan Reddy's son Rohit Reddy at VNR farms in Hyderabad. Krishna Mohan Reddy is an OSD to the Andhra Pradesh CM’s office.
The meeting of the CMs raised eyebrows as it came after nearly two years. Both the CMs have not engaged much with each other lately, given the Krishna-Godavari river water dispute between both the states. It was in January 2020, months before the pandemic, that Andhra CM YS Jagan met with KCR at his official residence (Pragati Bhavan) in Hyderabad. Later, owing to the existing water and state bifurcation disputes, their relationship appeared to have been strained. During their meet at the wedding ceremony, both were seen talking to each other.
The wedding ceremony saw the attendance of several ministers, MLAs and politicians from the ruling TRS and other parties. Telangana Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan also attended the wedding and blessed the couple.
Earlier this year, both the CMs complained to the Union government against each other, alleging damage to their respective state's interest. Telangana CM KCR raised objections over the Union government’s gazette notification which handed over the control of operations and maintenance of irrigation projects in both Krishna and Godavari basins, to the Krishna and Godavari River Management Boards (KRMB and GRMB). Recently, KCR even skipped the South Zonal Council Meeting chaired by Union Home Minister Amit Shah in Tirupati.
However, irrespective of the occasion, the meeting is being seen as a welcome sign, as many believe that it may pave the way to resolve pending issues between both the states. Andhra Assembly Speaker Tammineni Seetaram has also attended the wedding, accompanying CM YS Jagan.