YSRCP’s assembly boycott to continue in monsoon session

HyderabadOpposition YSR Congress Party on Wednesday decided to continue its boycott of the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly in the upcoming monsoon session, while raising issues linked to public interest and highlighting the failure of the Telugu Desam Party-led coalition government in the state legislative council meetings

Hyderabad

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Opposition YSR Congress Party on Wednesday decided to continue its boycott of the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly in the upcoming monsoon session, while raising issues linked to public interest and highlighting the failure of the Telugu Desam Party-led coalition government in the state legislative council meetings.

Addressing the party MLAs and MLCs at the office at Tadepalli, YSRCP president and former chief minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy reiterated that there was no point in attending the assembly session as speaker Chintakayala Ayyanna Patraudu was unwilling to give the status of leader of opposition to the party.

“The government is against recognising the YSRCP as the leader of opposition only to gag its voice. I shall continue to highlight the public issues through regular media conferences to show people the other side of the coin,” he said.

The YSRCP chief, however, said since the party had enough strength in the legislative council, it would act as the voice of the people and highlight the burning public issues,” Jagan said.

The YSRCP chief asked the party MLCs to raise the issues like irregularities in Mega DSC-2025 teachers’ recruitment. “We took up 10 different types of protests on the issue in the last 74 days, placing all the evidence to establish a viewpoint. We exposed various irregularities, including leakage of question papers, outsourcing scandal and irregularities in sports quota appointments, and demanded a CBI inquiry into the role of education minister Nara Lokesh,” he said.

Jagan also asked the MLCs to raise issues like failures in the implementation of fees reimbursement and Vasathi Deevena schemes. He announced that the party would represent the farmers’ voice on lack of minimum support price to the crops and suspension of free crop insurance scheme.

The YSRCP also decided to fight against new public-private-partnership policy, repeal of Disha Bill, witch-hunt of OBC leaders of the party, junior doctors’ strike and dissatisfaction among the employees.

Meanwhile, Jagan announced MLC Thumati Madhava Rao as the party’s candidate for the vacant post of deputy chairman of the legislative council.

NO ATTENDANCE, NO SALARY: SPEAKER

Meanwhile, state assembly speaker Chintakayala Ayyanna Patraudu expressed dissatisfaction over the decision of the YSRCP MLAs to boycott the state assembly proceedings.

Speaking to reporters, the speaker questioned why salaries should be paid to YSRCP MLAs who decided not to attend assembly sessions. “Legislators are elected to discuss public issues and raise the concerns of their constituencies in the assembly. What is the rationale behind their continued absence from the House?” he asked.

Ayyanna Patrudu said MLAs who failed to attend assembly sessions should not be paid salaries and added that he had already brought the issue to the attention of the Central government. He suggested that the matter should be discussed in Parliament and that appropriate legislation should be enacted to deal with legislators who remain absent from the House.

“Why should those who do not attend the assembly continue as MLAs?” Ayyanna Patrudu asked. He said a face-recognition system had been introduced in the Assembly to prevent proxy attendance and the alleged use of forged signatures by some members.

The speaker also said a proposal to disqualify MLAs who remained absent from the assembly for six months was currently at the discussion stage. “We are waiting to see what guidelines the Central government will issue on the matter,” he said.

He further said the issue of allotting government quarters to MLAs who do not attend assembly sessions would be examined in consultation with the General Administration Department before a decision was taken.