BJP supports Telangana, opposes way of passing bill

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Tuesday stressed it favours a separate Telangana state but expressed reservations over the manner in which the bill to create it was passed in the Lok Sabha.

"We are satisfied we fulfilled our promise of Telangana," said Leader of Opposition Sushma Swaraj said after the bill was passed.

"We are criticizing the manner in which the bill was passed, but we are in support of the bill," she said.

Questioned why BJP supported the bill which was passed amid ruckus, while it had maintained it did not want to pass the bill in din, Sushma Swaraj said: "The Congress was playing a game. It wanted to say that we took up the bill but it could not be passed in din as BJP was opposed to it. We have been committed to formation of Telangana so it was our duty to support it."

She also said that the BJP was not able to pass it during the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government because then ally, the Telugu Desam Party (TDP), was opposed to it.

The BJP did not move any amendments to the bill in the lower house, but will move amendments in the Rajya Sabha, she said.

"We did not move amendments in Lok Sabha because we did not believe the bill was introduced," Sushma Swaraj said.

She added that the party accepted that the bill has been introduced because it was Speaker Meira Kumar's decision.

The BJP also slammed the government for having an "unconstitutional" provision in the bill by giving governor charge for law and order.

"They could have moved a constitutional amendment bill," she added.