Hyderabad:
The Telangana Assembly passed three important bills on Tuesday amid chaos and protests. These bills include the Young India Physical Education and Sports University of Telangana Bill, the Telangana Universities (Amendment) Bill, and the Telangana Goods and Services Tax (Amendment) Bill.
Protests in the Assembly continued for the second day, with BRS legislators wearing black shirts as a sign of protest. They repeatedly raised slogans and demanded a discussion on the Lagacharla issue. Despite the uproar, the bills were introduced and passed without discussion.
Legislative Affairs Minister D. Sridhar Babu introduced the GST Amendment Bill, while Damodar Raja Narasimha introduced the Telangana Universities (Amendment) Bill. Konda Surekha presented the Young India Physical Education and Sports University of Telangana Bill. The session resumed at 3 p.m. after a two-hour break, during which the bills were approved.
The protests were centered around the handcuffing incident involving a farmer from Lagacharla in Vikarabad district. Speaker Gaddam Prasad Kumar repeatedly urged members to cooperate in passing the bills, but BRS members held placards and continued their demonstrations. BJP legislators also joined the protests, demanding a debate on the Congress government’s promises regarding the six Guarantees.
Ministers Sridhar Babu and Seethakka called on opposition members to maintain decorum and participate in the discussions. They accused the BRS of deliberately disrupting the proceedings and urged them to engage in meaningful debate.
Later in the session, during a discussion on the Tourism Policy, Government Whip Adi Srinivas and other Congress MLAs countered BRS allegations that the Congress government was anti-farmer. Srinivas claimed that the BRS failed to implement any significant policies during its ten years in power, not just in tourism but across various departments.
After the passage of the bills, the Speaker adjourned the House for the day.
