Hyderabad, March 28: The government has forwarded a list of names to the Governor for appointment as pro tem Chairman of the Council on March 30.
The four-year term of A. Chakrapani as member and presiding officer of Council ends on March 29, the day the Council is scheduled to be adjourned sine die. Therefore the pro tem chairman should be in place before March 30 to ensure that the Upper House will not be without its head, said Legislative Affairs Minister D. Sridhar Babu. The pro tem Chairman, who will be chosen from among the senior members like S. Basavapunnaiah and Paludugu Venkata Rao, will be administered the oath by the Governor and will continue till the new Chairman is elected.
However, the dilemma over fixing a date for the Chairman’s election continues. If the government decides to issue a notification for the election of Chairman on March 28, the Council may not be adjourned sine die on March 29 as scheduled.
As the election process takes at least two days, the government has two options — extend the session by a day or to convene a special session later for the swearing-in of the newly-elected members and election of the Chairman. A decision on issuance of the election notification is likely to be taken on Monday.
–Agencies