Ruckus in assembly may lead to disqualification of MLAs, warns CM Revanth
Hyderabad: Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy has warned MLAs of disqualification if they disrupt the Assembly proceedings without valid reason.
In an informal chat with media persons at his chambers in the Assembly after the House was adjourned for the day on Wednesday, the Chief Minister said, “The Congress government is very democratic and that's why no opposition MLA was even suspended even as they disrupted the proceedings on several occasions the past one week. But, patience has its limits.”
“Our government does not favour expulsions or suspensions from the house but membership of MLAs could be cancelled if worse situations arose,” he said and referred to the past expulsions of Congress MLAs Komatireddy Venkat Reddy and S.A. Sampath Kumar in March 2018, during the BRS rule. He also mentioned his own suspension from the Assembly for an entire session, against which he had filed a petition in the Telangana High Court.
The Chief Minister said Venkat Reddy and Sampath Kumar had been disqualified from the Assembly, accusing them of unruly behaviour during the Governor's address to the joint session of the Legislature. By doing so the previous BRS government had set a tradition to disqualify MLAs who disrupted the proceedings. The Congress government will be forced to follow this tradition if BRS MLAs disrupt proceedings There is a limit to tolerance.”
Revanth Reddy highlighted the Congress government's commitment to democratic principles in running the Assembly, emphasising that opposition members were given ample time to speak. “This session allowed for extended debates, with BRS leaders K.T. Rama Rao, T. Harish Rao and G. Jagadish Reddy speaking for six hours. In contrast, Deputy Chief Minister Bhatti Vikramarka, legislative affairs minister D. Sridhar Babu and I myself did not take up much time.”
He emphasised the importance of discussions and said that on Monday the session ran for 17 hours which was equal to five days of session. The state budget was presented promptly on July 25 following the central government’s budget on July 23.
The Chief Minister said the state government presented the budget outlay in accordance with the allocations to the state in the Central budget. It was mandatory to approve the Appropriation Bill by July 31, he added.