Government scuttled bill for Andhra: Congress

The Congress on Monday accused the Narendra Modi government of "deliberately" not allowing voting on a private member's bill on giving special status to Andhra Pradesh last week.

"Government deliberately did not allow Rajya Sabha to take up voting on the bill as it would have been a political defeat for it," Congress leader Jairam Ramesh told media at Parliament complex here.

He said the Congress will continue to raise the issue in the Upper House until voting takes place on the bill.

"We don't want any discussion on it as discussion has already taken place. It's just the voting that is to be do done, and we will continue to demand for it," he said.

Expressing surprise over the government's move, Ramesh said that he has been in Parliament for the past 12 years but never witnessed a scene where a government scuttled a bill like this.

"In the history of 64 years of Rajya Sabha, no government ever tried to do this," he said.

Asked if the Congress will continue disrupting the house over the issue in the days to come, Ramesh said that "tomorrow is another day", but the issue will be raised.

The former Environment Minister also accused the BJP of delaying the GST bill, saying a large number of people in the BJP were not sure of their version of the bill.

"BJP wants the GST for industrialists but we want it to be for consumers and common people and that is why we have suggested 18 percent cap.

"We have demanded it in order to contain inflation and to ensure that (tax) burden does not go to common people," he said.

Earlier in the day, Rajya Sabha could not function as Congress kept on demanding voting on the private member bill.

--IANS

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