Reiterating that it was for the Centre to take a decision on the contentious statehood issue, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy today appealed to Telangana protagonists not to hamper the development and welfare programmes.
“The Telangana demand is not new and it has been there for the past 50 years. The Centre appointed the Srikrishna Committee to look into the issue and based on its recommendations and consultations with all political parties it will take a decision. The State government will implement whatever decision the Centre takes on Telangana,” Mr. Kiran Kumar Reddy said, replying to the motion of thanks to the Governor’s address in the state Assembly this afternoon.
The Chief Minister completed his reply in just about 12 minutes even as the TRS MLAs stormed the Speaker’s podium and raised slogans demanding that the House pass a resolution seeking creation of Telangana state.
Referring to the recent ‘Rachchabanda’ (mass contact programme) organised by the government across the State, the Chief Minister pointed out it was a massive success despite strong opposition by Telangana protagonists.
“The programme reflected the real aspirations of the people in getting their grievances redressed. More than 66 lakh new petitions were received during the three-week long programme from people seeking various welfare measures. Our government is committed to implement all the welfare programmes initiated since 2004,” Mr. Kiran asserted.
He warned the Telugu Desam Party that it would have to sit in the opposition for a third successive term if it did not cooperate with the government in implementing the welfare and development agenda.
The Chief Minister criticised TDP Chief and Leader of Opposition N Chandrababu Naidu for not even condemning the unruly incidents in the House during Governor ESL Narasimhan’s address on the opening day of the session.
“I strongly protest the indifference of the Opposition Leader. The Governor is not just a person, but an institution. If we insult the institution, we will end up as a laughing stock in front of the public who elected us,” Mr. Kiran remarked.
He defended the suspension of three TRS and two TDP MLAs from the House for a week and said it was due to their unruly behaviour during the Governor’s address and not any other issue.
The House then adopted the motion of thanks to the Governor’s address by voice vote.
Earlier, in the day Chief Whip Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka initiated the discussion on the motion while Congress MLA Dronamraju Srinivas seconded it.
None of the Opposition parties took part in the debate on the motion as the proceedings were constantly disrupted by TRS, CPI and TDP MLAs from Telangana. The House was adjourned three times in the morning session because of the disruptions.
