Andhra assembly adjourned over Telangana bill

Andhra assembly Friday resumed its winter session to debate the bill for the formation of a Telangana state, but the house adjourned immediately after it met for half-an-hour amid pandemonium.

Speaker N. Manohar adjourned the house as legislators from Seemandhra (Rayalaseema and coastal Andhra) surrounded the podium to oppose the bill.

Raising slogans in support of united Andhra Pradesh, Seemandhra legislators of Telugu Desam Party (TDP), and YSR Congress party demanded that their adjournment motions be taken up.

The speaker rejected the adjournment motions and tried to go ahead with the question hour. As the slogan-shouting continued, he adjourned the house but it did not re-assemble even after half-an-hour.

TDP had moved the adjournment motion on the way in which the state and the central governments handled the bifurcation issue, while YSR Congress wanted the house to pass a resolution to urge the central government to keep the state united.

Legislators from Telangana region cutting across party lines wanted immediate debate on Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Bill 2013.

The bill, sent to the assembly by President Pranab Mukherjee under Article 3 of the Constitution for its views, was tabled in the house Dec 16. However, it could not be taken up for debate due to protest by Seemandhra legislators for four days.

The speaker Dec 19 adjourned the house till Jan 3. The house is scheduled to meet till Jan 10, and again from Jan 16 to Jan 23 to debate the bill. The president has asked the assembly to return the bill by Jan 23 with its views.

The Speaker recently visited Lucknow and Patna to study the modalities adopted for the debate on the bills in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar assemblies for formation of Uttarakhand and Jharkhand states.