Published Sep 08, 2026 | 5:57 PM ⚊ Updated Sep 08, 2026 | 6:19 PM
Deputy Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh K Pawan Kalyan.
Does Andhra Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan attend cabinet meetings?
Of course, he does. Every one of them, and without fail. That is, if a written response from the Andhra Pradesh General Administration Department (GAD) to a Right to Information (RTI) query is to be believed.
The Cabinet Assistant Secretary, GAD, issued the clarification to an RTI petitioner from the East Godavari district at a time when Pawan Kalyan’s absences from cabinet meetings remain a hot topic of discussion in Andhra Pradesh. How a Deputy Chief Minister can miss so many meetings is a question many of his critics have been asking.
Against this backdrop comes the data that as many as 57 cabinet meetings had been held up to August 14, 2026, the period covered in the RTI reply, after the Chandrababu Naidu-led NDA coalition government came to power on June 12, 2024.
The GAD Cabinet Division was asked four specific questions in the petition about these meetings.
The first one centred on absences. When asked how many times ministers and the Deputy CM were absent from these 57 meetings, the answer was never.
The second question was about the procedures being followed for absentees. The GAD Assistant Secretary answered that there were no specific guidelines to follow when ministers did not attend.
The third question was about whether Pawan Kalyan had any special exemptions. Officials clarified that the Deputy CM does not have any privileges distinct from other ministers.
Finally came a question about who bears responsibility. The RTI reply stated that under Rule 11 of the AP Business Rules 2018, all ministers bear collective responsibility for cabinet decisions, even if the Deputy Chief Minister is absent.
The responses reached the petitioner on August 31.
Now, here’s the interesting contradiction.
During the 57 meetings covered in the reply to the petition, various ministers have not attended due to illness, foreign tours, or personal reasons.
Pawan Kalyan, in particular, has been a notable absentee on many occasions.
Look at 2026 alone. Between January and September this year, 15 cabinet meetings were held.
Of these, 13 meetings were held before August 14. But the Jana Sena leader was part of only six of these meetings. He sat through the meetings on January 8, April 10 and May 14 and left midway on June 4. Kalyan also briefly attended the meetings held on March 26 and June 23.
The Deputy Chief Minister missed the remaining meetings on January 28, February 24, March 13, April 30, July 10, 23 and August 6 (held during the August Andhra Pradesh Assembly sessions).
Kalyan also skipped meetings held on August 18 and September 1, but they were held after the RTI reply was sent.
The agendas for these meetings included issues such as land allocations and debt mobilisation.
Some of these absences were because of legitimate reasons.
Kalyan underwent surgery in July. At the time of the cabinet meeting on July 10, he was at Mumbai’s Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital, where he underwent surgery on July 11 and was discharged on July 15.
But then came a few misses that are harder to explain.
He attended party events in Mangalagiri on July 20, but missed the July 23 cabinet meeting.
His subsequent schedule included:
Welcoming Kumki elephants in Mangalagiri on July 24.
Attending the Bhogapuram airport inauguration with PM Modi on August 1, five days before a cabinet meeting he missed.
Participating in Independence Day celebrations in Kakinada on August 15, three days before another cabinet meeting he missed.
Currently, Kalyan is in Kerala for naturopathy treatment. Jana Sena sources indicate he will be returning to Andhra Pradesh in two to three days.
GAD officials explain that as long as a minister is in the cabinet, the meeting dates and agenda details reach them well in advance. Because the cabinet makes collective decisions, all members remain responsible for those decisions as long as they are part of the council.
GAD Assistant Secretary Satyavati clarified to South First why the RTI response stated that no one was absent.
She said that if ministers cannot attend due to personal reasons, illness, or foreign tours, they inform the Chief Minister in advance. In such cases, it is not officially considered an “absence.”
When asked if ministers who are absent receive the minutes, her answer was simple. There is no such procedure, Satyavati stated.
South First attempted to contact GAD Secretary Shyamala Rao for further clarity on why a coalition partner’s Deputy Chief Minister is not recorded as absent even when he is physically absent from meetings where crucial policy approvals are made. This article will be updated once her response is received.
From our archives:
Pawan Kalyan has power; can he prove he can govern?
Back pain or political pain? Questions over Pawan Kalyan’s walkout from Andhra Pradesh Cabinet meet
Delhi calling: Pawan Kalyan aiming to emerge as the NDA’s southern face
(Edited by R Rajesh Kumar.)
