‘Cong won’t allow withdrawal of private member bill on AP special status’

New Delhi: Senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Thursday said that the party would not allow withdrawal of the private member bill moved by KVP Ramachandra Rao on according special status to Andhra Pradesh.

Jairam Ramesh

If private member bill is passed in the Rajya Sabha, it will be our victory.

“A whip has been issued for tomorrow (asking Congress members to be present in the House). We will under no circumstance let the bill withdrawn. If it is passed in the Rajya Sabha, it will be our victory,” he said. The former Union Minister was speaking at a round table conference on the issue of granting of special status to Andhra Pradesh. The private member bill is being treated as a money bill, Ramesh added.

Andhra Pradesh has been demanding a Special Category State (SCS) status from the Centre ever since it was decided to carve out Telangana, along with capital city Hyderabad. During a short duration discussion in Rajya Sabha, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley had said that instead of allotting it a special constitutional entitlement, the government would handhold Andhra Pradesh until it became economically stable.