AP Assembly Winter Session Updates: Panchayati Raj Amendment Bill Passed

AMARAVATI: The winter session of the Legislative Assembly and Council, commenced from Monday with the Assembly passing the Panchayati Raj Amendment Bill. The Opposition TDP members objected to how the bill could be passed without a debate on the order and staged a walkout.   Speaking during the debate after the Panchayati Raj Amendment Bill was tabled Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy said that the Bill was already discussed in detail. "The bill was sent to the Council after the debate in the assembly was over. There the bill was passed with some amendments and came back to the Legislature. As the bill has already been debated for a long time, it is not right for the Opposition to ask the House to reconvene, '' he said.

" What was decided by this House by the majority of151 legislators, we are re-approving what the government had already decided upon earlier. This is just a formality. There is no scope for again negating the Bill. The Opposition are behaving as if the Bill was recently tabled and behaving strangely as ifand is unaware of it,'' he said.

The Chief Minister explained that the law was being enacted in such a way that if anyone spends money to influence voters in the election, then action will be taken against them. "The amendment is intended to prevent anyone from spending money on elections,'' he stated. The Bill has a provision to check the malpractices in elections, including money power, and reducing the election process by expediting the schedule, besides allowing action to be taken even after the election results are announced. 

The Panchayat Raj Minister explained the features and the House passed the Bill with a voice vote. The amendments proposed by the Council were rejected by the House and the Bill was passed in the same format as it was introduced earlier.

The TDP members walked out stating that the Bill was passed without discussion. The TDP had given an adjournment resolution to discuss the issues related to Agriculture but by then, they had already staged a walkout. The House reconvened after the Legislative Affairs Committee (BAC) meeting on the first day of the winter session of the Assembly, the House approved the introduction of the AP Panchayati Raj Act Amendment Bill-2020 by Panchayati Raj Minister Peddireddy Ramachandra Reddy.