Sabita Indra Reddy, Dharmana resign!

Two cabinet ministers charged in the disproportionate assets case have submitted their resignations to Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy, sources  said on Monday.

They put in their papers late Sunday night following directions from the Congress central leadership, party sources said.

However, an official confirmation of the resignations is expected later Monday. The chief minister is likely to forward the resignations of both the ministers to governor E.S.L. Narasimhan for acceptance.

Home Minister P. Sabita Indra Reddy and Roads and Buildings Minister Dharmana Prasada Rao met Kiran Kumar Reddy at the latter's residence in Hyderabad around midnight.

Both the ministers later switched off their mobiles but left for their respective homes in their private vehicles after surrendering their official vehicles, giving credence to the buzz about their resignations.

It may be recalled that the Congress leadership had made it clear on Saturday that the ministers should voluntarily resign. The direction came after the chief minister camped in Delhi for four days, holding talks with the key leaders.

After his return to Hyderabad, the chief minister summoned Dharmana, who was in his native Srikakulam district in north coastal Andhra, 600 km from Hyderabad. Sabitha, the first woman to become home minister in the state's history, hails from  Ranga Reddy district abutting Hyderabad.

The demand for dropping the tainted ministers gathered momentum after two central ministers, Ashwini Kumar and Pawan Kumar Bansal, resigned recently on the direction of Congress leadership in view of certain allegations against them.