Hyderabad (PTI): The Andhra Pradesh Assembly on Wednesday plunged into turmoil after 46 MLAs, including TDP leader Chandrababu Naidu, were suspended from the House and some of them clashed with marshals leaving two members injured.
The two injured members were among the MLAs belonging to the TDP, TRS, CPI and CPI(M) who faced disciplinary action after they continued to persist with their demand for a debate on the alleged money laundering by Sandur Power Company and 12 other subsidiaries promoted by Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy's son Jaganmohan Reddy.
When the suspended MLAs refused to vacate the House, marshals (plain clothes policemen) tried to physically remove them resulting in TDP MLA Vem Narender Reddy sustaining an injury on his right wrist while his party colleague Payyavula Keshav suffered a head injury when the marshals pushed him on to a glass door that broke in the melee.
Finance and Legislative Affairs Minister K Rosaiah, however, later told the Assembly that the two TDP MLAs did not receive any injuries and they were only trying to cover-up their crime of assaulting the marshals in the House.
The Uttar Pradesh assembly had witnessed similar unruly scenes on Tuesday. Trouble began on Wednesday when some TDP MLAs rushed to the well of the House and pleaded with Speaker K R Suresh Reddy to allow a debate on the money laundering issue.
The Speaker adjourned the proceedings twice to restore normalcy but to no avail. He then named the protesting members and asked Legislative Affairs Minister to move a resolution for their suspension. Accordingly, Rosaiah moved the motion which was carried by voice vote.
By the time the resolution for their suspension was passed, the protesting TDP MLAs resumed their seats but the Speaker asked them to leave the House. As the TDP members stayed put, the Speaker called the marshals in to evict the MLAs.
At that stage, TDP MLAs Vem Narender Reddy, Devineni Umamaheswara Rao, Ch Ayyannapatrudu, Talasani Srinivas Yadav and Sayanna objected to their physical eviction from the House and tried to push the marshals away.
The marshals used force to remove some of the MLAs and then tried to evict senior MLA Nagam Janardhan Reddy. At one point, they surrounded Opposition Leader Chandrababu Naidu as well but the TDP MLAs stood as a shield and prevented his eviction.
Chief marshal Gajapati Raju pleaded with Naidu and other MLAs to leave the House but the TDP MLAs tore the agenda papers and flung them in the air. As the marshals increased force to evict the TDP MLAs, TRS MLA Harish Rao joined his colleagues and pushed the marshals aside.
With the marshals unrelenting despite pleas by the MLAs that they would leave the House after a protest, senior TDP MLA Dhulipalla Narendra Kumar attacked the chief marshal. Former deputy speaker K Harishwar Reddy uprooted a mike and tried to hit the chief marshal and others but his colleague K Atchannaidu prevented him.
As the unruly scenes continued, Speaker Suresh Reddy first ordered discontinuation of the live telecast of House proceedings and later adjourned the House for 15 minutes.
Even after the House was adjourned, the marshals tried to continue their operation but all the opposition MLAs protested in unison forcing them to retreat. The opposition MLAs then sat quietly inside the House. Panchayat Raj Minister J C Diwakar Reddy went to CPI floor leader Ch Venkat Reddy and urged him not to precipitate the situation.
As the protest continued inside the House, floor leaders of opposition parties met the Speaker in his chamber and condemned the marshals' high-handedness.
Meanwhile, the Assembly security personnel vented their ire on mediapersons who were recording the scenes in the lobbies by trying to forcibly disconnect the camera cables as the incident was being telecast live.
As the marshals forcibly tried to disperse the mediamen, they strongly protested and the issue was taken to the notice of the Speaker.
Meanwhile, the chief marshal mobilised a strong posse of marshals drawn from the city task force and all of them rounded up the suspended MLAs inside the House. With folded hands, Gajapati Raju pleaded with Chandrababu Naidu to leave the House. He also had a word with former Speaker and TDP senior leader Yanamala Ramakrishnudu following which the Opposition MLAs walked out on their own.
Enough said.
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