Hyderabad: After the recent spate of defections, four more Opposition legislators are allegedly planning to join the TRS soon.
“As per my information, four more legislators from Congress and Telugu Desam are in touch with the TRS leadership and they will shift anytime,” a Congress legislator claimed.
TRS legislators also admitted in the Assembly lobbies that some more Opposition MLAs were planning to join the party to “ support the CM’s Bangaru Telangana dream”.
Meanwhile, the recent defection of Chevella Congress legislator K. Yadaiah to the TRS while the Assembly was in session triggered a war of words between legislators of the two parties on Monday.
It was a strange situation in the Assembly wherein MLAs of the Congress, Telugu Desam and BSP, who defected to the TRS, sat in Opposition Benches, but supported the ruling party.
From its strength of 63 MLAs after the 2014 general elections, the TRS’ strength has now shot up to 73 due to the defection of 10 MLAs from the Opposition. Its strength in the Legislative Council has also increased.
The Congress MLAs wore black badges to protest against the government for encouraging defections.
No action has been taken by Assembly Speaker Mr Madhusudhana Chary and Legislative Council Chairman Mr Swami Goud against the defectors despite petitions by the affected parties.
Taking exception to Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao for encouraging defections, Congress Floor Leader K. Jana Reddy condemned the same while other Congress MLAs urged Governor E.S.L. Narasimhan to take action against the CM and the defectors.
Read: Telangana Legislative Assembly adjourned over defections by MLAs
TRS legislators led by Mr Juppally Krishna Rao, hit back at the Congress questioning why the party had been silent when the late Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy had tried to split the TRS and lured 10 legislators to its fold.
“We are not luring them. They are joining the TRS on their own. They regret staying away from the Telangana movement. Why are they making a hue and cry now when they were silent when Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy tried to split the TRS?” Mr Krishna Rao pointed out.
Stating that defections were nothing new, he asked why had Congress Floor Leader Mr Jana Reddy, Mr T. Jeevan Reddy and Ms D.K. Aruna defected to the Congress from other parties.
“The Congress has no moral right to question the TRS on defections. Congress took away our MLAs in the past. Why did they not raise a hue and cry then?” he asked.
Congress MLA Mr T. Jeevan Reddy said that never in the history of the legislature had a ruling party encouraged defections in the midst of an Assembly session .
“KCR garu looks very insecure, hence he is encouraging defections. Both defectors and those who encourage them should be charged under the anti-defection law. We will request the Governor to disqualify the CM and the defecting MLA,” Mr Reddy said.
Stating that the CM was busy with the defections and ignoring farmers in distress in Medak and other districts, he said it was shameful on part of irrigation minister T. Harish Rao and IT minister K.T. Rama Rao to defend the defections. “They talk about YSR. YSR was an Andhra leader who tried to lure TRS MLAs only to water down the Telangana movement. Congress president Sonia Gandhi gave Telangana and is this the gift TRS has to give?” he asked.
Congress MLAs including Mr Uttam Kumar Reddy, Ms J. Geetha Reddy, Ms D.K. Aruna, Ms Padmavathi and others demanded that the defecting legislators should resign as MLAs and contest again.
