20 TRS, BJP MLAs suspended

• Speaker takes action for 'disrupting' proceedings
• Members wanted resolution on T
• Left protest on police 'high-handedness'

Hyderabad: Twenty MLAs from TRS and BJP were suspended for two days from the state Assembly for repeatedly disrupting the proceedings of the House on Monday. The MLAs who were suspended include Etela Rajender, K Tarakarama Rao, Jupally Krishna Rao, T Rajaiah, Pocharam Srinivas Reddy, Koppula Eshwar, K Vidyasagar Rao, M Bhikshapathi, E Ravinder Reddy, Chennamaneni Ramesh, Jogu Ramanna, Gampa Govardhan, D Vinay Bhasker, Nallala Odelu, Kaveti Sammaiah ( All TRS). G Kishan Reddy, Yendala Lakshminarayana, Yennam Srinivas Reddy(all BJP). Two independents- Nagam Janardhan Reddy and Somarapu Satyanarayana supporting BJP and TRS respectively were also suspended

It all began with the TRS and BJP MLAs surrounding the podium immediately after the House met for the day at 9 am. When they refused to go back to their seats despite repeated appeals made by the Speaker N Manohar, the House was suspended for 30 minutes and all the floor leaders were called for a meeting to resolve the issue since the Assembly had not been able to transact any business since June 10 when it met for the second phase of the budget session.

After a nearly three hour long meeting with floor leaders, when the House met at 12.25 pm, there was no change in the situation as TRS members refused to relent from their demand for a resolution on separate state and discussion on the illegal arrests of T activists who had come out to participate during Chalo Assembly programme. At this stage, the Minister for Finance Anam Ramanarayana Reddy moved resolution for suspension of the members.

Even after being suspended, the members continued to surround the podium. While marshals forcibly took out Jogu Ramanna, other members finally walked out raising slogans against the Government. The CPI MLAs including their floor leader Gunda Mallesh staged a walk out protesting against the police crackdown on Telangana activists during the Chalo Assembly.

Mallesh took serious exception to police entering the premises of Makhdoom Bhavan on that day. The CPM too registered its protest on the issue. Later talking to reporters at the Assembly media point, Rajender warned the Congress and TDP leaders of severe backlash from Telangana supporters for colluding to suspend them. These 'Andhra parties' would be driven out from the region including villages in the coming months, he said.

Pocharam Srinivas Reddy said that it was a black day in history of the Assembly. He said the government had hurt the sentiments of Telangana people by suspending the TRS legislators. Interestingly, the major opposition Telugu Desam Party boycotted the meeting of the floor leaders saying that they would not be party to any such meeting unless the Speaker assures to restore democratic values in the House and allot time to all the parties in proportion to their strength in the Assembly.

The opposition leader N Chandrababu Naidu had written a letter to Speaker last week complaining that he had even proposed certain names of TDP members to be nominated in the House committee on irregularities in land allocation without consulting the party. They were also unhappy that the Speaker and the government were not taking measures to facilitate discussion on important issue like Bayyaram iron ore, government's callousness towards farmers, mismanagement of power sector, corruption at higher places, non dismissal of tainted ministers etc.