14 Telangana Cong MLAs suspended for stalling House

Fourteen Telangana Congress legislators were suspended for a day from the Assembly for stalling proceedings for the second consecutive day over the defection of yet another fellow party MLA to the ruling TRS.

Congress members were protesting against the recent defection of Chevella MLA K Yadaiah in the presence of Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao at the Telangana Bhavan.

Since June, the Congress in Telangana had lost four MLAs to the ruling TRS. It originally had 21 members in the state legislature. K Kanakayya, G Vittal Reddy and D S Redya Naik were among Congress MLAs who joined the TRS earlier. Several Telugu Desam Party legislators have also defected to the ruling TRS. The worried Congress said the TRS has no moral authority to rule the state as it openly endorses defections from the ranks of the opposition.

“It is unfortunate that the chief minister himself presides over these welcome meetings in total violation of anti-defection law,” TCLP leader K Jana Reddy said on the floor of the house on Tuesday. The Congress has moved an adjournment motion on defections and asked for a debate. However, the ruling party said that the matter is pending with the Speaker and he will take a call on the complaint made by the Congress.

Assembly affairs minister T Harish said that a debate on the issue is sub judice and could not be discussed, prompting the Congress to demand the Speaker to disqualify Yadaiah under Anti-Defection Act.

With Congress MLAs continuing their slogan shouting even after two short breaks, Harish Rao read out the names of 14 Congress MLAs and Speaker S Madhusudanachari suspended them from the house for a day.

“It is unfortunate the TRS government which is advocating golden Telangana is behaving like this. It doesn’t have a slightest respect towards the Congress which has fulfilled the dreams of Telangana after five decades of struggle,” Geetha Reddy, senior Congress MLA observed.