Hyderabad, December 11: As many as 102 members of the Andhra Pradesh legislative assembly have submitted their resignations to the Speaker to protest the proposed bifurcation of the state.
Speaker Kiran Kumar Reddy told reporters on Friday that 102 legislators of the total 294 legislators had submitted their resignations to him since Thursday.
“I have not accepted their resignations and will take a decision after talking to them individually,” he said.
A total of 57 legislators of the ruling Congress party, 32 of the opposition Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and 13 of Praja Rajyam Party (PRP) have submitted their resignations.
These legislators allege that the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government at the centre took a “unilateral” decision on carving out a separate Telangana state without consulting them.
Meanwhile, life in parts of Andhra and Rayalaseema regions were affected on Friday in response to a daylong shutdown to protest the proposed division of Andhra Pradesh.
Buses of the Andhra Pradesh Transport Corporation (APSRTC) went off the roads as political activists, students and other groups opposed to the division of the state took to the streets.
Shops, business establishments and educational institutions remained closed in most parts of the 13 districts — nine districts of Andhra and four districts of Rayalaseema region.
In the coastal city of Visakhapatnam, and commercial hubs like Guntur, Vijayawada, Machilipatnam, Nellore, Kurnool and Kadapa, roads wore a deserted look as the APSRTC suspended all bus services.
Protesters conducted rallies raising slogans against the proposed formation of a separate Telangana state and demanded that the central government drop the proposal.
In Rayalaseema, various groups called for a shutdown to oppose the division of the state. They, however, want separate statehood for their own region in the event of the formation of a Telangana state.
Police said they have made elaborate security arrangements to prevent violence. Students of various universities in both the regions had damaged several buses during the protest on Thursday.
Telangana, which witnessed violent agitation for a separate state, is now calm. Hyderabad and nine other districts of the region have returned to normal after 11 days of protests and shutdowns.
The Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) plans to conduct a victory rally in Telangana districts to celebrate the announcement by the central government that the process of forming a separate state would be initiated by tabling a resolution in the state assembly.
-IANS