HYDERABAD: A heated exchange between Congress and BRS MLAs over lack of quorum marked the start of Wednesday’s session of the Legislative Assembly that began at 10.05 am, five minutes later than scheduled.
Former minister T Harish Rao and BRS MLAs alleged lack of quorum to initiate the proceedings for the day, accusing the government of failing to ensure the presence of the minimum number of members in the House to take up the debate on the Vote on Account Budget.
BRS member Kadiyam Srihari told the House that legislative affairs ministers used to make phone calls to ensure quorum during crucial business.
Responding to this, Legislative Affairs Minister D Sridhar Babu criticised BRS MLAs, accusing them of unnecessarily creating problems and disrupting the proceedings. Sridhar Babu targeted Harish Rao and V Prashant Reddy, former legislative affairs ministers, claiming that they were well aware of the rules but were attempting to mislead the public that there was lack of quorum.
Sridhar Babu pointed out that, with a total strength of 119 members in the Assembly, a quorum required 10% or 12 members, and he asserted that 18 members were present when the Speaker initiated the proceedings. The minister accused the BRS of attempting to convey a misleading message by claiming a lack of quorum.
In response, BRS MLAs urged the Speaker to commence sessions promptly at 10 am. They argued that the delayed start at 10.05 am was not appropriate.