VIJAYAWADA: The AP Assembly started its Monsoon Session on Thursday on a stormy note, marked by disturbances from Telugu Desam legislators after they moved an adjournment motion to discuss the arrest of TD chief N. Chandrababu Naidu.
Speaker Tammineni Sitaram suspended three MLAs for the entire Session and 14 more for a day.
TD MLAs carried placards and raised slogans during Question Hour. The acrimonious scenes halted the House proceedings. These legislators demanded that the House discuss the “illegal” arrest of Naidu first. The Speaker asked the TD legislators to participate in the Question Hour and said a decision on the adjournment motion would be taken at the BAC meeting.
Irate Opposition MLAs continued raising slogans. They barged into the podium, tore the papers and threw them at the Speaker, demanding that the House discuss the arrest of Naidu. The Speaker said the House can discuss the issue if they gave a notice under relevant rules.
Minister for finance and legislative affairs Buggana Rajendranath told the opposition to follow the rules via-a-vis introduction of an adjourned motion. “The government is ready for discussions not only on the arrest but on many other issues,” he said.
He asked the opposition BAC member to attend the panel’s meeting and to put this in the business agenda of the Assembly. He expressed a willingness to engage in a debate not only on Naidu’s arrest but also on the skill development scam.
Things turned worse when MLA Kotamreddy Sridhar Reddy, who had changed sides from the YSRC to the TD, made an attempt to physically remove the Speaker's monitor. Balakrishna looked at the YSRC members, twirled his moustache and slapped his thigh.
Water resources minister Ambati Rambabu reacted by saying,” Go and do it in films, not in the Assembly.” He alleged that the TD MLAs were attempting to create disturbance and asked the security personnel to protect the Speaker.
Speaker Sitaram adjourned the Assembly briefly to control the situation. When the Session restarted, the unruly scenes continued. Following this, the Speaker suspended three MLA for the entire Session and 14 legislators for the day.
Anagani Satyaprasad and Payyavula Keshav of TD and YSRC rebel MLA Kotamreddy Sridhar Reddy were suspended for the entire Session. After taking up various issues, the Speaker adjourned the Assembly to Friday.
