Hyderabad: All three BJP MLAs in the Legislative Assembly were suspended from the House for the rest of the session on Monday, the first day of the sitting of the House, for disrupting proceedings. Speaker Pocharam Srinivas Reddy announced suspension of MLAs T. Raja Singh, Raghunandan Rao and Etala Rajendar for the rest of the session within minutes after the session commenced.
Separately, six Congress MLAs walked out in protest against the lack of the Governor’s address.
The BJP MLAs wearing black scarves rose from their seats as soon as finance minister T. Harish Rao started his budget speech. The Speaker asked them to resume their seats but the MLAs continued to protest. Raja Singh tried to storm into the well of the House.
At this stage, minister Talasani Srinivas Yadav moved a motion seeking suspension of the BJP MLAs. The House approved the motion through a voice vote following which they were suspended. The BJP members refused to leave the House and were evicted by marshals.
The three legislators sat in protest in front of the main gate of the Assembly. They alleged that the TRS government was resorting to undemocratic methods to suppress the voice of the Opposition. They alleged that by scrapping the Governor’s address they had insulted the person holding the Constitutional post. The government, however, defended its move saying it was not a new session but continuation of the previous session.
BJP Legislature Party leader Raja Singh said it was black day in the history of democracy. It was a conspiracy of Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao to suspend BJP MLAs for the session, he alleged. The TRS government destroyed the Constitutional rights of the BJP MLAs, he said.
Later, when the members tried to approach the Gandhi statue within the Assembly premises to register their protest at the blatant violation of the Constitution, the police prevented them. Subsequently, the police arrested them.
A delegation of BJP MLAs and senior party leaders called on Governor Tamilisai Soiundararajan at Raj Bhavan and submitted a representation. The BJP appealed to the Governor to advise the Speaker to repeal the suspension and allow them to represent their people in the Assembly.
