Power tariff hike: Speaker calls all-party meet tomorrow

By Our Special Correspondent

HYDERABAD, OCT. 4. The Assembly Speaker, Mrs. K. Pratibha Bharathi, has convened a meeting of all floor leaders on October 6 morning to discuss the proposed House Committee on power tariff hike.

An invitation to this effect was sent on her behalf to various political parties by the Legislature Secretary, Mr. K. Tuljanand Singh, on Tuesday without spelling out details about the House Committee which was assumed to be a non-starter following a stalemate in the Assembly when the Chief Minister, Mr. N. Chandrababu Naidu, rejected the Opposition's demand for suspension of the revised power tariffs pending finalisation of the panel's report.

It now remains to be seen whether the Congress (I) will participate in the House Committee. Mr. Tuljanand Singh had approached the CLP Secretary, Mr. K R. Suresh Reddy, after the session adjourned sine die on September 17 requesting the party to nominate four members to the proposed House panel.

The CLP leader, Dr. Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy, responded to this request through a letter on September 21 demanding to know the terms of reference of the proposed House Committee. ``On hearing from you, we will think about (nominating Congress members) and write to you again,'' he said.

At the outset, Dr. Reddy pointed out that the demand for constituting a House Committee was not made by his party. The Congress (I)'s demand was loud and clear - rollback of the power tariff hike. It was the Chief Minister who offered a House Committee and the Congress (I) accepted the proposal provided the power tariff hike was kept in abeyance. The Chief Minister bluntly refused to suspend the hike.

Dr. Reddy recalled a statement by Mr. Naidu in New Delhi on August 25 that the Government could not take any action on the House Committee's report. He wanted to know whether the Speaker had discussed with Mr. Naidu the utility of a House Committee in light of his observations.

``If the Government still feels it has no right to take any action, I would like to know what is going to be achieved by constituting a House Committee,'' he asked.

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Section  : Southern States
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