New Delhi: Andhra Pradesh Congress chief N Raghuveera Reddy today demanded the resignation of Union minister M Venkaiah Naidu for favouring a discussion on a private member bill on according special status to the state if it were a Money Bill as referred by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley.
If Congress member K V P Ramachandra Rao’s bill was not a Money Bill then Jaitley should resign for “misguiding” the House, Reddy told reporters.
“If this is considered a Money Bill as referred by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, we demand resignation of then Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu for forwarding it to President of India for admission and discussion in the House.
“And if it is not being treated as a Money Bill, then Jaitley should resign for misguiding the Rajya Sabha,” he said.
Reddy claimed that BJP was “singled out” on the issue and therefore Jaitley referred the bill as Money Bill to “obstruct” its passage in the House.
“The bill was ready for voting. The Congress party had issued a whip in favour of the bill. We had a support from 11 parties for it. As BJP was singled out and the bill was being passed against their wishes, Jaitley reffered to it as Money Bill to obstruct and scuttle it,” he said.
On Monday Congress is “going to make a genuine” attempt to move a resolution with 11 supporting parties for the implementation of special category status to the state for which an assurance was given by then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, he said.
He said the “five crore people of Andhra Pradesh” have been “cheated” by the TDP and BJP alliance government by not allowing them to “get their right” of special category status for the state.
Earlier, Deputy Chairman P J Kurien reffered the matter – whether ‘ Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation (Amendment)) Bill’ was money bill or not – to Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan for a decision on its fate.
Kurien had said that the Constitution “does not give any power to the Chair (of Rajya Sabha) to decide if it is Money Bill or not.
Finance Minister and Leader of the House Arun Jaitley had raised objections to the Bill, saying Money Bill cannot be introduced in the Rajya Sabha.
PTI