Hyderabad: The Telangana Assembly witnessed uproar on Wednesday, March 25, after former prime minister Indira Gandhi was mentioned during a discussion on branding ippah (mahua) liquor by the Congress government. The reference was made by a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislator, triggering protests.
It can be recalled that on Tuesday, March 24, the mention of Nathuram Godse and Mahatma Gandhi led to angry exchanges between the BJP and Congress legislators.
A little earlier, Congress MLA from Jadcherla J Anirudh Reddy spoke about the benefits of encouraging the extraction of ippah liquor, which is extracted from the ippah flowers found exclusively in forest areas.
Referring to various naturally derived liquors, including tequila extracted from a species of cactus and consumed in over 130 countries, Anirudh Reddy argued that ippah (mahua) liquor, too, could be positioned as an organic beverage that does not adversely affect health if consumed in moderation.
He also stressed that it will become a revenue generating source for the tribals living in the agency areas of Telangana.
BJP MLA from Armur P Rakesh Reddy, who spoke in support of Anirudh Reddy’s proposal, appreciated the idea, as he felt it will address the problem of adulterated toddy claiming the lives of the poor in the northern Telangana region.
He, however, advised the Congress government “not to brand ippah liquor under the name of Indira Gandhi,” and to look for some other good name instead. That was enough for the Congress MLAs and ministers to rise in fury.
BC Welfare Minister Ponnam Prabhakar angrily stood and roared, “what tamasha are you doing,” demanding Rakesh Reddy to immediately apologise for his remark.
“Indira Gandhi was described by Atal Bihari Vajpayee as an iron lady and as Durga Devi. This is unfortunate, nothing doing, he has to apologise,” Ponnam demanded.
However, Rakesh Reddy stood to his ground that he said nothing unparliamentary, and that he only advised the government not to use her name for such an initiative.
Even Siddipet MLA Harish Rao, who commented on the issue, said that there were often unparliamentary utterances in the Assembly, and questioned if someone (Chief Minister Revanth Reddy) could call Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) chief K Chandrasekhar Rao as “bhadve (pimp).”
The House once again erupted, this time with Congress and BRS MLAs pitted against each other.
Finally, Rakesh Reddy didn’t apologise, but said many unparliamentary utterances were made in the House, and that though he didn’t say anything like that, he would be fine if a House Committee is constituted to ascertain if he said anything wrong and, if needed, he was also willing to apologise.
He said that he respected Indira Gandhi as much as the Congress, and has in the past condemned those who spoke against her in a demeaning way.
There was a back and forth between the ministers and BJP MLAs, after which Legislative Affairs Minister D Sridhar Babu said that the members needed to set a precedent when they spoke on the floor of the Assembly. Keeping in mind the time being drained in the verbal spats, he requested the Speaker to remove the reference of Rakesh Reddy from the records.
