11 TDP MLAs suspended from AP Assembly for disrupting proceedings

Amaravati: Eleven members of the Telugu Desam Party were suspended from the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly for a day on Tuesday after they disrupted the proceedings of the House.

A visibly irritated Chief Minister Y.S Jagan Mohan Reddy lashed out at the TDP legislators and asked them to behave in a "civilized manner" and let the House run its business.

As the unrelenting Opposition members raised slogans demanding a discussion on the mysterious death of 18 people in West Godavari district, Legislative Affairs minister Buggana Rajendranath moved a motion for the suspension of the TDP MLAs.

The motion was carried by voice vote after which the suspended members left the House.

A day earlier, five TDP MLAs were suspended from the Assembly for the rest of the budget session for disrupting the proceedings over the Jangareddygudem hooch tragedy.

Meanwhile, the Chief Minister once again reiterated that the deaths in Jangareddygudem in West Godavari were all due to "natural causes" and not due to illicit liquor as is being alleged by the TDP.

"Many of the bodies were cremated and no case was registered. In one case where there was some suspicion, the authorities exhumed the body and conducted a post-mortem. Why would we do that if there was anything wrong?" the Chief Minister asked.

He categorically ruled out the illicit distillation of arrack in Jangareddygudem. "There is a police station, ward secretariat, and women police. Is it possible to illicitly distill arrack in such a place?" Jagan asked."Use your brains and think logically," he told the TDP members.