At Ram Nath Kovind fete, KCR, Chandrababu Naidu may lobby for bigger House
Hyderabad: The TRS and the TD are awaiting a positive decision from Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP president Amit Shah on increasing the number of Assembly seats in TS and AP, and introduction of an appropriate Bill before the Monsoon Session of Parliament closes in August.
AP Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, a key ally in the ruling NDA dispensation, will be in Delhi on July 25 to participate in the swearing in ceremony of President elect Ram Nath Kovind at the Parliament Central Hall.
Union minister Y.S. Chowdary is trying to fix an appointment for Mr Naidu with Mr Modi and Mr Shah the same day to request them to introduce the delimitation Bill so that Assembly seats could be hiked as per the AP Reorganisation Act.
It is more than a year since Mr Naidu has had a one on one meeting with Mr Modi.
Though there have been requests earlier on the delimitation issue, nothing has moved except for a draft Bill which is now with the Union home ministry, the nodal agency.
Unless Mr Modi and Mr Shah takes a political decision, the home ministry cannot take the draft Bill for Cabinet approval.
A similar demand has been made by Telangana state Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao during his meetings with Mr Modi earlier. TRS leaders say they have supported the Prime Minister and the Centre on demonetisation, GST, and the Presidential and Vice President elections and it is time for the Prime Minister to reciprocate by bringing the delimitation Bill in the current session.
TS CMO officials said Mr Rao was most likely to attend Mr Kovind’s swearing-in ceremony though party MPs said they had no confirmation.
Asked about delimitation, a state BJP leader said since the TRS had been extending support to the PM, Mr Modi and Mr Shah may take a political decision on hiking the seats.
“With or without delimitation, the BJP cannot get any additional benefit, we have to strengthen the party further in the two states. Within two years, there is no guarantee we will come to the first position, it would be better for PM to concede the demand. Testing the patience of the TRS and the TD will not help us,” a senior leader of BJP said.
