Uproar in Andhra Pradesh Assembly; 7 TDP legislators suspended for a day

Amid bedlam, seven TDP legislators, including their deputy leader K Atchannaidu, were suspended from the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly on Thursday for a day.

During a short discussion on Direct Benefits Transfer schemes, the House witnessed heated exchanges between the ruling YSR Congress and the TDP members.

The TDP members protested and demanded that they be allowed to speak.

As they trooped into the Well of the House, seven TDP legislators, including their deputy leader K Atchannaidu, were suspended from the House for a day.

This was the fourth consecutive day during the ongoing winter session that the opposition members were suspended from the House.

Following this, the other TDP members too walked out in protest.

Earlier, tension prevailed in the House as some ministers rushed menacingly towards the TDP benches after a verbal duel between Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy and TD Legislature Party deputy leader Nimmala Rama Naidu.

The Chief Minister alleged the TDP leader was "deliberately misleading the House by telling lies."

"I am moving a privilege motion against him," Jagan told Speaker T Seetaram.

Rama Naidu, though off the mike, sought to hit back at the Chief Minister, but the Speaker said it would not go into the record.

The Speaker then announced that he was referring to the Chief Minister's privilege motion to the "privilege motion" (committee).

"You have misled the House by telling lies. Don't mislead the House," Seetaram told the TDP MLA.

As the TDP members sought to raise a protest over this, the ministers rushed towards the opposition benches but some of the senior YSRC MLAs intervened and pulled them back.

The TDP members then staged a walkout from the House.

The ministers then took turns to lash out at the TDP after which a video film of Jagan's political rallies on the election eve last year was screened in the Assembly, to 'place on record' the various promises he made to the people.