The Cabinet of Andhra Pradesh, on Tuesday, passed a resolution to abolish the Legislative Council. The decision to scrap the Legislative Council, while a major policy decision that is being hotly contested by the opposition parties, comes as no surprise.
Two key bills that related to YSRCP Government’s policy of creating three capitals (one Administrative, one Judiciary, and one Executive) were passed by the Legislative Assembly but have failed to go through the Legislative Council. Both “A.P Decentralization and Inclusive development of all Regions bill” and “CRDA repeal bill” were instead referred to the ‘Select Committee’ by the opposition dominated Council, greatly annoying the ruling YSRCP. Opposition TDP, which is fighting tooth and nail to stall the government’s plans to split the Capital into three, immediately claimed a moral victory, irking the ruling party further.
Discussions were held by Chief Minister Y.S.Jagan on how to overcome the legal hurdle, and Mr. Jagan preferred to do away with the Council altogether rather than deliberating on alternatives. While stating that his party could seize the majority position in Council in not too distant future, the Chief Minister said that his government chose to abolish it instead, because the Council was hindering his government’s efforts towards development. He went ahead and added that the Legislative Council was an unnecessary burden of Rs 60 Crore per year.
The decision to abolish the Legislative Council essentially strips two Ministers of their legislator status. Both Mr. Pilli Subhash Chandra Bose and Mr. Mopidevi Venkata Ramana are legislators from the upper house. How YSRCP will accommodate both these leaders and other MLCs hailing from their party, remains to be seen.
The State Government’s decision to abolish the Legislative Council needs to be approved by the Central Government.