Ministry:
Home Affairs
- The Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation (Amendment) Bill, 2015 was introduced in Lok Sabha by the Minister of Home Affairs, Mr. Rajnath Singh, on March 2, 2015. The Bill seeks to amend the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014.
- The Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014 provides for bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh into the successor states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Among other things, it addresses the representation of the states in Parliament, separate Legislative Assemblies and Legislative Councils for both states, role of the Governor, revenue distribution, distribution of cash and credit balances, management and development of water resources, and creation of separate cadres for administrative, police and forest services.
- Legislative Council for successor states: The Act provides that two Legislative Councils shall be constituted, one for Andhra Pradesh with up to 50 members, and another for Telangana with up to 40 members. The Bill amends this provision with regard to the Legislative Council of Andhra Pradesh to allow for up to 58 members.
- The Constitution lays down the composition of Legislative Councils. It requires that members of Legislative Councils be elected/ nominated by different categories of persons. For example, one third of the total members must be elected by members of municipalities, district boards and other local authorities, while one-twelfth members must be elected by teachers in educational institutions in the state. In keeping with requirements of the Constitution, the Act specifies the number of members elected/nominated from each category with the total number of members in the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Council as 50. The Bill makes consequential changes to the Act in this regard because it seeks to increase the strength of the Legislative Council to 58. The changes to each of the categories are provided below:
- The Act provides that 17 members shall be elected by members of municipalities, district boards and other local authorities. The Bill changes this to 20.
- The Act provides that 17 members shall be elected by members of the state Legislative Assembly. The Bill changes this to 20.
- The Act provides that 6 members shall be nominated by the Governor. The Bill changes this to 8.
- The Act provides that: (i) 5 members shall be elected by persons residing in the state who are graduates, and (ii) 5 members shall be elected by teachers in educational institutions in the state. The Bill makes no changes to these provisions.
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