By Kashifa Wisal
The statements made by the former Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy regarding the Leader of Opposition (LoP) status of the Andhra Pradesh Assembly have caused a political storm in the state. He, during the press conference on Wednesday, accused the ruling Telugu Desam Party (TDP) of unfairly depriving him of the LoP status as he also questioned the legitimacy of the Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan to be in the Assembly as an MLA, further condemning by political challenges and in facilitating further reaction from the ruling coalition, before, after heated argument inside and outside the Assembly.
So is the insistence of YSR Congress Party since long to be granted LoP status in the state. On Wednesday the party organized yet another protest as Speaker C Ayyanna Patrudu dismissed Reddy’s plea for LoP status. The Speaker rejected the plea as “unreasonable” since, under law, to be called one must have at least 18 members to be eligible for the post. However, the YSRCP presently has only 11 members out of the total 175 Assembly seats after getting out of the 151 seats it got in the 2019 elections.
This is the second occasion during the ongoing Budget Session when the issue of LoP has come up in the Assembly by the YSRCP. Minister N Lokesh Naidu was for the Speaker’s decision, whereas Reddy was more in favour against the ruling. “The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) gave opposition status to the BJP when it had three members. We are the sole genuine Opposition in Andhra Pradesh. The TDP, BJP, and Jana Sena are alliance partners,” argued Reddy in the Assembly.
Reddy also claimed that the TDP government was flouting constitutional norms by not letting the opposition party play its role efficiently in the House. He alleged that the government was not providing sufficient time for opposition speeches and refusing to give the status of Leader of Opposition, which was rendering it impossible for the people’s voice to be heard. “With 40 percent of the voting strength, we must be deemed to be the Opposition. If we are not granted the status, who will be the Opposition?” he asked.
The Speaker nudged Reddy to remember that his writ petition in the Andhra Pradesh High Court on the LoP question remained pending and cautioned that his charges could result in breach of privilege and contempt of the House.
The YSRCP has been making overtures for LoP status since the last year’s polls, with Reddy writing a formal letter to the Speaker in June. Tempers ran high during the joint sitting of the Legislative Council and Assembly on February 26, when the YSRCP members staged a walkout in protest over the issue.