Lok Sabha passes AP Reorganisation Amendment Bill

Amidst protests from the Telangana Rashtra Samithi and other parties in the Lok Sabha, the government on Friday pushed through the controversial Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation (Amendment) Bill.

TRS members trooped into the well of the House to protest against the Bill, which provides for transferring six mandals of Khammam district in Telangana in full and two others partially to Andhra Pradesh to enable implementation of the Polavaram Multi-purpose National Irrigation Project.

Home Minister Rajnath Singh said the Bill would provide ''much-needed flexibility'' to the Andhra Pradesh government to rehabilitate and resettle people displaced by the Polavaram project.

“It will also provide contiguity in the areas that form a part of Andhra Pradesh for administrative convenience,” the Home Minister said.

Despite protests by the TRS, Biju Janata Dal and the Trinamool Congress, Speaker Sumitra Mahajan asked Singh to move the Bill, noting that the protesting MPs are not allowing discussion to take place on it. The Bill was passed without discussion.

TRS MP B Vinod Kumar, who was to move a statutory resolution to disapprove the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation (Amendment) Ordinance 2014 promulgated by the President on May 29, objected to the Speaker’s decision to move the motion along with the Bill.

But the Speaker overruled the objection and took the Bill and the resolution together in keeping with the House procedure.

Even as the other members of his party shouted slogans from the well, Vinod Kumar said the ordinance was against the spirit of the Constitution.

“The state of Telangana was born on March 1, since the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act 2014 was notified on that day, but the date of notification was mentioned as June 2,” he said.

“This government brought the ordinance on May 29,” he added, explaining the reason behind the statutory resolution he brought together with BJD’s B Mahtab and Trinamool’s Sultan Ahmed asking the House to disapprove the ordinance.

“To alter the boundaries of a state, they (government) must follow Article 3 of the Constitution. The President must recommend the Bill to the House only after obtaining the views of the respective legislatures. In this instance, the government has not elicited the views of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh legislatures,” he said.

TMC MP Saugata Roy also raised a Point of Order opposing the ordinance and the Bill. “It is very unfortunate that without obtaining the sanction; without obtaining the approval of Telangana and Odisha, the Government has gone ahead and promulgated an Ordinance,” he said.