Amravati: Andhra Pradesh IAS officer D. Muralidhar Reddy has finally received a regular posting after spending nearly 120 weeks without an assignment following the change of government in the state in June 2024. The 2006-batch officer has been appointed Secretary of the Tribal Welfare Department by the Chandrababu Naidu-led government, ending a wait of approximately two years and four months.
The posting was part of a broader administrative reshuffle in which the Andhra Pradesh government assigned responsibilities to nine IAS officers who had been awaiting postings. Reddy’s prolonged wait has drawn attention to the practice of keeping senior administrative officers without regular assignments after changes in political leadership.
D. Muralidhar Reddy Appointed Tribal Welfare Secretary After 120 Weeks
The Andhra Pradesh government issued the posting order on Monday, assigning Reddy the responsibility of Secretary of the Tribal Welfare Department. He replaces M. M. Nayak, who had been holding the post under full additional charge.
Reddy, an IAS officer of the 2006 batch, had been without a regular posting since June 2024, when the Telugu Desam Party (TDP)-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) came to power, defeating the Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress Party (YSRCP) government headed by former Chief Minister Y. S. Jagan Mohan Reddy.
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Following the change in government, Reddy was attached to the General Administration Department (GAD). His wait continued even as several other IAS and IPS officers who had also been left without assignments after the political transition were gradually accommodated in different positions.
According to the account published by India Today, Reddy’s case was notable because no vigilance or departmental inquiry had been cited as a reason for keeping him without a posting for such an extended period.
Why Was D. Muralidhar Reddy Kept Without a Posting?
The prolonged wait followed a wider administrative reshuffle after the TDP-led NDA government assumed office in Andhra Pradesh in June 2024.
During the second half of 2024, around a dozen IAS officers and two dozen IPS officers were reportedly kept without regular postings. The situation was widely perceived in the state’s political and administrative circles as being linked to suspicions that some officers had been closely associated with the previous YSRCP government.
Some officers were alleged to have acted in accordance with the previous government’s directions, allegedly disregarding established rules and procedures. These were perceptions and allegations surrounding the administrative transition, rather than proof of misconduct by every officer who was left without a posting.
The number of officers awaiting assignments gradually declined as the new administration began allocating responsibilities. However, some were reportedly given less prominent positions, while others continued to wait.
Reddy was among those whose cases remained unresolved for an unusually long period.
According to sources cited in the India Today report, Reddy’s association with the previous political establishment contributed to a negative perception about him. The report quoted sources as saying that the officer’s wait was prolonged because of perceptions created by one or two officers who had earlier served in the Chief Minister’s Office.
Reddy, who hails from Kurnool district, is related to former YSRCP finance minister Buggana Rajendranath Reddy and is also distantly related to former Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy.
The report stated that Reddy met Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu on several occasions over the past two years, seeking a posting. However, he remained without a regular assignment until the latest order.
The government notification assigning him the Tribal Welfare Department has now ended that prolonged wait.
D. Muralidhar Reddy’s Career Before the Long Wait
D. Muralidhar Reddy is an Andhra Pradesh cadre IAS officer who entered the service through promotion from the State Civil Service. Before his induction into the IAS, he spent several years working in state administration after qualifying for the Andhra Pradesh Group-I examination.
He secured Rank 2 in the Group-I examination in 1996 and began his career in the State Civil Service. He served in positions including Revenue Divisional Officer (RDO) and Deputy Collector before being promoted to the IAS in 2006.
His experience in revenue administration provided the foundation for subsequent assignments in district administration, agriculture, ports, healthcare infrastructure and rural development.
Over a career spanning nearly three decades in public administration, Reddy has held several important responsibilities in the Andhra Pradesh government.
Education, Early Life and Family Background
D. Muralidhar Reddy was born on July 1, 1969, in Balapanur village in Kurnool district, Andhra Pradesh.
His father, Ravikumar Reddy, is a retired Executive Engineer in the Irrigation Department. Reddy holds a Bachelor of Technology (B.Tech) degree and a Master of Technology (M.Tech) degree. He is married to Hema, and the couple have two children.
His entry into public service followed his success in the Group-I examination in 1996, through which he joined the State Civil Service before eventually moving into the IAS.
His career trajectory is an example of the promotion route through which experienced state civil servants can enter the country’s premier administrative service.
Key Postings Held by D. Muralidhar Reddy
Revenue Divisional Officer and Deputy Collector
In the initial phase of his administrative career, Reddy worked as a Revenue Divisional Officer and Deputy Collector in different parts of undivided Andhra Pradesh.
These assignments involved revenue administration and the implementation of government programmes at the sub-district level. He spent several years in the State Civil Service before his promotion to the IAS in 2006.
Special Commissioner in Agriculture and State Port Director
Reddy subsequently held responsibilities in the agriculture and ports sectors. His assignments included serving as Special Commissioner in the Andhra Pradesh Agriculture Department and as Director of the Andhra Pradesh State Ports Department.
These roles expanded his administrative experience beyond conventional revenue and district-level responsibilities.
East Godavari District Collector
In June 2019, Reddy was appointed Collector and District Magistrate of East Godavari district.
As district collector, he was responsible for coordinating district administration and overseeing the implementation of government programmes. His priorities included rehabilitation and resettlement associated with the Polavaram project, zero-budget natural farming, healthcare services and improvements in the quality of education.
His tenure involved coordinating the work of different departments and addressing development and welfare issues at the district level.
Vice Chairman and Managing Director of APMSIDC
In July 2021, Reddy was transferred to the Andhra Pradesh Medical Services and Infrastructure Development Corporation (APMSIDC) as its Vice Chairman and Managing Director.
The corporation plays a role in the state’s healthcare infrastructure and medical services systems. The assignment placed him in charge of responsibilities associated with healthcare infrastructure development and the administrative functioning of the organisation.
CEO of the Society for Elimination of Rural Poverty
In early 2024, Reddy also briefly held full additional charge as Chief Executive Officer of the Society for Elimination of Rural Poverty (SERP).
SERP is associated with rural poverty alleviation and community-based development programmes in Andhra Pradesh. His additional assignment came shortly before the change of government in the state.
Following the political transition in June 2024, Reddy was attached to the General Administration Department and remained without a regular posting until October 2026.
Another IAS Officer, Yerra Srilakshmi, Also Waited for a Posting
Reddy was not the only IAS officer whose posting remained pending for an extended period after the change of government.
Yerra Srilakshmi, a 1988-batch IAS officer, also awaited a regular assignment after being attached to the General Administration Department on June 20, 2024. She had served as Special Chief Secretary of the Municipal Administration and Urban Development (MAUD) Department under the previous YSRCP government.
Unlike Reddy, however, Srilakshmi’s case was associated with a long-running investigation into alleged irregularities involving mining leases.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) accused Srilakshmi of misusing her official position while serving as Secretary of Industries and Commerce between 2007 and 2009 to facilitate the grant of mining leases to companies associated with former Karnataka minister Gali Janardhana Reddy and others in the Obulapuram mining case.
She was arrested in November 2011 and remained in jail in Hyderabad until October 2012, when she was released on bail.
These allegations formed part of the wider disproportionate-assets and corruption-related cases associated with Jagan Mohan Reddy and others. The allegations should be distinguished from a final judicial determination of guilt.
In December 2020, the Jagan government appointed Srilakshmi as Secretary of the MAUD Department. She subsequently served as Principal Secretary and Special Chief Secretary.
TDP leaders accused her of helping undermine the Amaravati capital project during the previous administration. According to the India Today report, she also sought the intervention of Deputy Chief Minister and Jana Sena chief Pawan Kalyan to secure a posting.
She was eventually appointed Special Chief Secretary in the General Administration Department in the last week of June, just four days before her retirement on June 30.
Her case differed from Reddy’s in that the latter’s prolonged wait was not accompanied by a reported vigilance or departmental inquiry cited as the reason for withholding a posting.
IAS Officers Without Postings Despite Calls for Better Administration
Reddy’s appointment has also renewed questions about how administrative postings are managed in Andhra Pradesh.
Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu has held collectors’ conferences every three months, bringing together IAS officers to discuss governance, administrative efficiency and the effective use of government resources.
Against this backdrop, the prolonged period during which some officers remained without regular responsibilities has prompted questions within administrative circles about the utilisation of experienced personnel.
Some officers have reportedly expressed concern that certain officials are kept without postings for weeks or months without a clearly stated official reason, while others are assigned multiple additional charges and carry heavy workloads.
The India Today report said it had sought a response from Andhra Pradesh Chief Secretary G. Sai Prasad on why officers were frequently left without postings for extended periods and how this practice aligned with the government’s emphasis on administrative efficiency. His response was awaited when the report was published.
Reddy’s appointment as Secretary of Tribal Welfare brings his 120-week wait to an end. It also puts the spotlight on a broader administrative issue: ensuring that experienced civil servants are assigned clear responsibilities and that decisions on postings are guided by administrative requirements and established procedures.
