Ministers hailing from Seemandhra and Telangana regions interpreted the Chief Minister’s resolution rejecting the bifurcation Bill as a symbol of victory of respective causes they were championing.
Seemandhra Ministers said it reflected the wish of majority of the people for keeping the State united. “According to Assembly procedures, voice vote is nothing but a unanimous view of the House,” Finance Minister Anam Ramanarayan Reddy said. It included the voice of the Chief Minister, Opposition leader N. Chandrababu Naidu and others.
Telangana Ministers, however, termed the resolution a proof of frustration of the Seemandhra leaders who could not stop the bifurcation process in spite of their intense lobbying. The Bill had been referred to the Legislature for its views and there was no scope for voting or passage of separate resolutions against it. “The resolution will not have any impact on the bifurcation process as it lacks legal and constitutional sanctity,” Minister K. Jana Reddy said.
Ministers S. Sailajanath and Mr. Ramanaryan Reddy said the two Houses had requested President Pranab Mukherjee not to recommend its introduction in the Parliament.
The views of those who had participated in the debate and that of those who had given their opinions in writing would also be sent to the President along with the resolution adopted by both the Houses, they said.
Mr. Jana Reddy said the resolution was aimed at creating confusion among the Seemandhra people and it was bound to remain within the confines of the Legislature.
Asked whether the Telangana Ministers would seek action against the Chief Minister, he said it was for the Congress high command to decide. Mr. Kiran Reddy assured that he would abide by the party’s decision on bifurcation, but did not keep his word.
“YSRC’s efforts paid off”The YSR Congress, which had throughout the Assembly session pressed for a resolution and voting, said its efforts paid off as other parties toed its line. Party president Y.S. Vijayamma asked why Mr. Reddy and Mr. Naidu were silent about resolution and voting earlier.
The TDP and other parties from Telangana, however, said the resolution lacked sanctity because the Bill did not provide for voting. Hence, there was no question of majority opinion. The purpose of sending the Bill to the Assembly was served as almost all the members expressed their views, something admitted by the Speaker himself.
KTR terms it a farceThe TRS led by K.T. Rama Rao described the day’s developments as farce which was taken up by backdoor methods with the connivance of the Speaker and the Chief Minister.
They tried to project a majority opinion which would not hold water in the Parliament. The MLAs appealed to youth of the region not to get disillusioned.
Nothing short of ‘Kurukshetra’Lok Satta MLA Jayaprakash Narayan asked the Centre to make all arrangements for the economic growth of Seemandhra if it wanted to take the Bill forward. The CPI floor leader G. Mallesh compared the battle in the Assembly to ‘Kurukshetra’.
The CPI(M) member J. Ranga Reddy said the Parliament will decide the winner though both camps claimed victory.
