Impasse over Bills pertaining to the Andhra three-capital plan continues between the state government and the Legislative Council.
Council Chairman M.A. Shariff had referred the two Bills to a select committee. The AP Legislature Secretary returned the file to Shariff two days ago saying the House panel couldn’t be constituted as due procedures were not followed in referring the Bills to the committee.
The Bills are the AP Decentralisation and Inclusive Development of all Regions Bill, 2020, and the Repealing the APCRDA Act Bill. The government proposes to retain Amaravati as the legislative capital, while making Visakhapatnam the home for executives and Kurnool the judicial capital.
Taking exception, Shariff has reportedly asked the Secretary to set up the committee immediately and send him the compliance report. He is said to be exploring all options if the Secretary continued to defy the order.
The opposition parties have also slammed the Secretary for returning the file to the Chairman with the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) terming it “contempt of the Upper House”.
The ruling YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) argued that the Chairman’s announcement to refer the Bills to the select committee was invalid. YSRCP leaders demand that the Bills be considered passed.
Y. Ramakrishnudu, TDP leader in Legislative Council, said the government’s argument was based on the lack of knowledge of legislative rules. The Council Chairman had referred the Bills to the select committee by using his discretionary powers and ignoring the YSRCP demand to put them to vote.
The Bills were passed by the Assembly at its special sitting on January 20. While one Bill aims at scrapping a special body created to develop Amaravati as the new capital, the second provides for development of Visakhapatnam and Kurnool as the two other capitals.
The Bills, however, hit a roadblock in the Legislative Council, where the opposition is in majority.
Taking note of the Opposition’s bid to stall the Bills, the YSRCP government moved to abolish the Upper House. The Assembly passed a resolution on January 27, recommending to the Centre to abolish the Council.
Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy during his meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday also urged him to expedite the process. Reddy told Modi the Council had lost its utility and it was going against Bills passed by the Assembly.
He urged Modi to direct the Law Ministry to take necessary action in this regard.
