For the third consecutive day, Winter Session of State Assembly failed to hold the debate on Telangana State Bill as the opponents of bifurcation continued to stall the proceedings as part of their strategy to delay the process.
A day after the Business Advisory Committee of the legislature decided to go ahead with the debate on the draft AP State Reorganisation Bill, the Seemandhra MlAs of Telugu Desam and YSR Congress party continued their protests in both the Houses and did not allow any discussion.
It was replay of Tuesday’s situation as the Seemandhra members rushed to the podium of the Speaker as soon as the House met in the morning. Shouting slogans they demanded that the House should pass a resolution opposing the bifurcation. They created a din in which Speaker D Manohar’s repeated appeals were not audible.
After adjourning the House twice, Speaker N Manohar adjourned the session for the day as Seemandhra MlAs surrounded his chair and shouted slogans. The members from Telangana region on the other hand raised slogans demanding an immediate debate on the Bill. T Harish Rao of Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) demanded the Speaker to suspend the members stalling the House. “We cannot tolerate any attempt to stall the House,” he said adding that the Telangana members will not keep quit if an attempt was made to adjourn the House without a debate. He alleged that the Chief Minister’s office was deliberately leaking wrong information that the session will continue till January 23.
later the Seemandhra members wrote a letter to the Speaker saying there were many doubts and misgivings over the draft State Reorganisation Bill, specially on the issues of sharing of water, electricity and allocation of employees.
P Keshav of Telugu Desam demanded full information to the members on the Central Government institutions, investments therein and the employees working in those organisations before taking up the debate on the Bill. “Without getting the necessary information we will not allow any debate,” he said.
The draft Bill was tabled in both the Houses on Monday. The opponents of the division of the State including YSR Congress party president YS Vijayalakshmi staged a walk out from the BAC meeting on Tuesday demanding that the House should first pass a resolution in support of united Andhra Pradesh.
However, the BAC decided to have a debate on the Bill in three phases. In the first till Friday when the House will be adjourned for Christmas holidays. In the second phase from January 3 till January 10 when House adjourns again for the Sankranthi holidays and then in the third phase from January 16 till January 23. The marathon debate was aimed at giving an opportunity to each and every member to express his opinion and propose her or his amendment to the Bill. The debate will be however without any voting.
The Seemandhra members were trying to stall the debate to delay the entire process including the passage of the Bill in both the Houses of Parliament. As the lok Sabha was adjourned abruptly on Wednesday, a special session of the House was likely to take up the Bill on Telangana after the State Assembly gives its opinion.
Shobha Nagi Reddy (YERCP) alleged that Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy was also supporting the State bifurcation. Talking to the media in the Assembly premises she alleged that both Chief Minister Reddy and leader of Opposition N Chandrababu Naidu had colluded to pave the way for the division of the State. She also alleged that the Bill had no details about the debts, revenue and resources.
In legislative council also the Seemandhra members stalled the proceedings by shouting slogans and gathering in the well to demand a resolution in support of united Andhra Pradesh.