CM-Bedi faceoff reaches flashpoint over Appropriation Bill

Don't want to miss the best from Business Standard?

Chief Minister V Narayanasamy today accused Lt Governor Kiran Bedi of deliberately withholding approval for the crucial Appropriation Bill as the assembly adjourned sine die without passing it in the asbence of her nod.

Asking if the Governor was functioning as an "agent of the Central government or of the BJP," Narayanasway who is engaged in a long battle of nerves with Bedi, said a piquant situation has arisen in view of the non-passage of the bill, which allows withdrawal of funds for government's expenditure.

"Genuine doubt arises that by delaying the approval, Kiran Bedi is acting at the instigation of someone or functions as an agent of the Central government or of the Bharathiya Janata party," he told reporters here.

Despite sending clarification sought by Bedi on the Bill, she has not "given her nod for tabling the Appropriation Bill in the House," Narayanaswamy said.

Accusing Bedi of "deliberately disrupting working of the elected government," the Chief Minister told reporters here that she had not given her approval only to blemish his government.

Lack of approval for the Appropriation Bill has serious implications, he said.

Only if the Bill facilitating allocation of budgetary appropriation to departments for 2018-19 was adopted could salaries, and pension to serving and retired government employees be disbursed, he noted.

Similarly, the passage of the Bill was key to funding ongoing schemes, launching welfare programmes and other routine government establishment tasks.

All such key tasks would be hit as the Appropriation Bill could not be passed in the Assembly, he said adding "the Lt Governor should totally be responsible for all these developments," he said.

It was perhaps for the first time in the history of the Union Territory that the budget session had been adjourned without passage of the Appropriation Bill, he said.

Earlier, before the House adjourned, it adopted an unanimous resolution moved by the Chief Minister urging the Centre to confer statehood to Puducherry.

Members belonging to the opposition AIADMK and AINRC also spoke in support of the resolution seeking statehood.

Another resolution said the elected government had powers for administering the union terriotory and asked the Lt Governor to function on the aid and advice of the Cabinet as highlighted by a recent Supreme court verdict.

Though Narayanasamy has been claiming that the apex court verdict would apply to Puducherry as well, Bedi had been highlighted the court's observation that the southern UT was on a different footing.

The House also adopted unanimously another resolution 'taking strong exception to the move of the Centre to dismantle the University Grants Commission.

After the resolutions were passed, Speaker V Vaithilingam announced that the statutory approval of Lt Governor was not available for adopting the Appropriation Bill.

He then adjourned sine die the Assembly which had a sitting for 13 days since July 2 when the budget was presented by Narayanasamy.

The Speaker later told reporters that "as soon as we get the nod, a special session of the House would be convened to adopt the Bill", he said.

Narayanasamy said he along with legislators of Puducherry would meet the Union Home and Finance Ministers and leaders of various political parties in Delhi on July 23 to press Puducherry's demand for statehood.