ST Commission Bill: Verbal battle mars debate

Vijayawada: Heated debates and arguments between the ruling YSRCP and the Opposition TDP marred the discussion on AP State Commission for Scheduled Tribes Act, 2019 in Assembly on Monday.

Both parties claimed that they had taken welfare measures for the upliftment and development of SCs and STs. However, the Opposition party supported the motion amid protests from the treasury benches.

YSRCP said the TDP has no right to talk about the welfare of SC/STs in the state since the party had neglected their welfare and development.

During the debate, the TDP leader N Chandrababu Naidu reacted sharply to the comments made by some YSRCP MLAS, particularly Dalit MLAs in the House.

The YSRCP MLAs reminded that earlier Naidu said that no one wishes to be born as Dalit. The ministers and ruling party MLAs demanded Naidu's apology for the comment.

They also reminded that Dalit MLAs were not inducted into the TDP Cabinet.

Taking part in the discussion, Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy said Naidu had inducted not a single tribal in his Cabinet.

He said only one candidate was elected to the state Assembly in 2019 from TDP out of 36 SC/ST candidates contested.

Jagan said some leaders are behaving like buffoons in Assembly and they did not have right to talk about the welfare of SC/STs since the TDP government had ignored them.

Jagan accused TDP chief of meting out injustice to Dalit farmers in capital land pooling.

Earlier, Naidu said the TDP had helped G M C Bala Yogi, Pratibha Bhrarati and K R Narayanan to get the coveted posts of Lok Sabha Speaker, Assembly Speaker and President of India.

He alleged that recently a Dalit minor girl was raped by upper caste youth in Guntur district. He said the TDP government had introduced residential schools for Dalits and categorised the SC reservations to benefit Madigas.

Demanding apology from Naidu for his 'no-one wish to be born as Dalit' comment, YSRCP members alleged that even today Dalits were not allowed into a temple at his Naravaripalle.

They also said the TDP government had not fully utilised the SC/ST sub-plan funds.