Stalemate continued in Andhra Pradesh assembly Tuesday as legislators from Telangana stalled the proceedings demanding the speaker to reject a notice given by the chief minister for rejecting Telangana bill.
Speaker N. Manohar adjourned the house for an hour, minutes after it assembled for the day as legislators from Telangana surrounded the podium to press for their demand.
The lawmakers from Seemandhra (Rayalaseema and coastal Andhra) also rushed to the well of the house, raising slogans in support of united Andhra Pradesh.
Ministers from Telangana, who had surrounded the speaker’s podium on the same issue Monday, lodged their protest Tuesday by standing near their seats.
Repeated appeals by the speaker to the agitating legislators to allow him to take up debate on Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Bill 2013 failed to restore order. He advised the members to express their views by participating in the debate.
The extended time for the state legislature to send back the bill to the president with its opinion is ending Thursday. No debate could take place on the bill in both the houses Monday due to protests by lawmakers from Telangana.
President Pranab Mukherjee Dec 12 had referred the bill to the state legislature under Article 3 of the Constitution for its opinion. It was initially given time to give its view by Jan 23 but after the state government sought another four weeks for the debate, the president extended the deadline by a week.
Opposing the state’s bifurcation, Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy had Friday submitted a notice to the speaker seeking permission to move a resolution to reject the bill. The resolution will urge the president not to send the bill to the parliament.
A similar notice to the council chairman A. Chakrapani was submitted by Endowments Minister C. Ramachandraiah.
The chief minister’s action has plunged the legislature into an unprecedented crisis. Ministers from Telangana led by Deputy Chief Minister Damodar Rajanarasimha have revolted against Kiran Reddy for unilaterally submitting a notice without discussing it in the cabinet.
Rajanarasimha has even demanded resignation of the chief minister, saying he has lost the confidence of ministers from Telangana.
Stalemate continues over Telangana bill in Andhra assembly added by Indian newspaper Sydney on
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