Continuing his defiant posture, Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy directed his anger at Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for holding talks with the Bharatiya Janata Party over the issue of supporting the AP Reorganisation Bill in Parliament.
“On the one hand, you brand the BJP a communal party but do not hesitate to host lunch and dinner for them to divide Andhra Pradesh,” Mr. Reddy told reporters after the AP Assembly was adjourned sine die on Thursday.
Blaming the Congress and the UPA Government for the present mess over the bifurcation issue, Mr. Reddy said it was surprising that the Prime Minister had expressed his anguish at the happenings in Parliament. “ I cannot understand why he could not see how hearts of crores of people of Andhra Pradesh are bleeding because of the bifurcation decision,” he remarked.
Terming the incidents in the Parliament on Thursday ‘unfortunate’, Mr. Reddy said the manner in which the Union Government wanted to introduce the Bill was undemocratic. “The Congress and the Centre have forgotten all conventions, rules and procedures while introducing the Bill in Parliament. The Centre has departed and deviated from the traditions with the only motive of getting the Bill passed at any cost,” Mr. Reddy said. He expressed confidence that the Bill would not be passed in the present session.
He said the anger among the Seemandhra leaders was so high that even Union Ministers had rushed into the well of the House to protest bifurcation. “Solution to such contentious issues can be found only through deliberations. The Congress leadership does not believe in that and is using all means to divide the State,” he said. Mr. Reddy wondered why the Centre was not waiting till the elections to the Assembly to know the mood of the people of AP. “If the result is in favour of bifurcation, they can proceed,” he said.
He termed unfortunate the suspension of the Seemandhra MPs and added that initial reports suggested that Mr. Lagadapati Rajagopal was assaulted by other members prompting him to resort to extreme action.