Manohar's adroitness makes him first choice for Speaker's post

Deputy Speaker Nadendla Manohar’s bright and brave show in the deft handling of the business that resulted as a face-saving device for the Treasury benches in the just concluded winter session of the Andhra Pradesh state Assembly can well enough land him the Speaker’s post.

Mr Manohar's act in the Assembly may secure him a full-fledged Speaker's post if the positive signals emanating from the Congress circles are taken as a yardstick.

His one-man show confronting inter alia the formidable opposition in the short but tumultuous session of the House, which was rocked frequently, gave a clear and convincing message to most, especially to Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy that he was just the person to fill the bill.

Political watchers observed that Mr Manohar was at 'ease' throughout, retaining his grin and with effective command over the language, which turned out to be all too impressive.

Mr Manohar specifically emerged 'victor' during the verbal duels with the opposition, despite a seasoned politician like Mr Chandrababu Naidu at the helm of opposition charge against the government in the House. His deft handling sometimes left Mr Naidu losing his temper and bursting out at none other than the Chief Minister.

The Deputy Speaker also seemed to have sent a vivid indication that he was not lesser than any new contender for the post. That his functioning as the then Speaker KKR's deputy during Mr Rosaiah's rein and his current disposal as acting speaker made all the difference, analysts say.

Mr Manohar’s adroit handling of certain delicate situations in the House which lent a saving grace to KKRs's maiden leadership can hardly be ill-looked or go off the record at the time of 'selection'.

His praise-worthy demonstration perhaps lends credence to the fact that his background was a proof with his political father behind him, fine tuning his skills.

Mr Manohar’s actions also testified that his presentation would come in handy for KKR at his crucial 'hour' in future, considering the 'shaky' start of the KKR rule.

Analysts point out that the Deputy Speaker was not for a moment found restive in his 'hot' chair. He dictated terms even to the main Opposition leader Mr Naidu very amicably, not giving scope for any slightest misunderstanding. That did not go unnoticed either by all concerned inside and outside the House.