Describing it as a dark day in parliamentary democracy, YSR Congress spokesperson and MLA Tatiparthi Chandrasekhar slammed the coalition government for taking the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) Chairman post away from the opposition party with the singular intention that no one should question its irregularities in managing state finances.
Speaking to media on Friday, Chandrasekhar said, it has been a convention and practice in parliamentary democracy to appoint the member from the opposition as chairman of the PAC, but the coalition government has done away with it making a mockery of the institution.
Though nominations were called for and our leader Peddireddy Ramachadnara Reddy was in fray, the ruling dispensation played foul and deprived the Opposition of its due position. Parliamentary history shows that PAC Chairman post was given to Opposition, irrespective of the numbers be it Congress, BJP, TDP or any other party.
Even with two members, BJP held that post in Parliament and stalwarts like Atal Bihari Vajpayee, PV Narasimha Rao, Jyotirmai Basu, Murali Manohar Joshi and other held the post and brought out various scams like Bofors, 2 G Spectrum, Commonwealth Games and others to public notice.
The intention of the government seems to be very clear, they do not want to face and questions on state finances and wanted to mismanage the funds as it is already seen in the budget allocations.
YSRCP with eleven seats is the only Opposition left in the Assembly and to deprive it of PAC post is nothing short heckling at the institution, which is meant to be a watchdog of the public finance and how it is being spent by the ruling party.
The move is only taken forward its policy of corrupt practices forward without being questioned and to gag the opposition voice, he said.
He also expressed concern over the detention of Dalit leader and former MP Nandigam Suresh and the way in which social media activists are being harassed.
