Hyderabad: BRS leader Vemula Prashant Reddy raised concerns on Tuesday about the appointment of a PAC chairman who had defected from the party. He said it went against parliamentary traditions and the spirit of democracy.
Speaking at a press conference in Telangana Bhavan, Reddy explained the importance of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC). He noted that the PAC is a crucial financial committee that monitors the government’s spending. In most cases, the PAC chairman is given to the Opposition, as they are responsible for questioning government actions.
Reddy, a former Legislative Affairs Minister, pointed out that the Assembly rule book clearly states that the PAC should consist of 13 members, with nine coming from the Assembly. He mentioned that PAC members are not chosen through elections but through a selection process.
He further explained that during the Assembly sessions, the Speaker is supposed to announce the election schedule for financial committees. Once the PAC election is over, the Speaker should announce the names of the committee members in the Assembly itself. However, this time, the committees were announced 38 days later, which Reddy found unusual.
Reddy highlighted that under Rule 250, the number of PAC members from the Opposition is based on their representation in the Assembly. He recalled that BRS had been informed there would be room for three members from their party in the PAC, so they submitted the names of T. Harish Rao and Gangula Kamalakar. He questioned how Arikepudi Gandhi’s name ended up on the list, especially since Gandhi had joined the Congress.
He further asked why Harish Rao’s name was removed without a proper vote. Reddy also questioned who allowed Arikepudi Gandhi to file a nomination on behalf of BRS, even though it was publicly known that Gandhi had switched to Congress.
Reddy mentioned that after Telangana was formed, leaders like Kishtha Reddy, Geetha Reddy, and Akbaruddin Owaisi were given the PAC chairman post as per rules. He also gave examples from the past, such as BJP leader A.B. Vajpayee being made PAC chairman during Indira Gandhi’s regime, and Congress holding the PAC chairman post during Modi’s tenure, even though they didn’t have official Opposition status.
Reddy accused the Chief Minister of being afraid of Harish Rao and questioned why his name was removed from the PAC list. He also criticized Revanth Reddy, accusing him of causing major disruption in the PAC committees despite criticizing KCR for damaging systems.
