By IANS,
New Delhi : Parliament Thursday accorded its approval to a bill recreating a legislative council in Tamil Nadu, with the Lok Sabha passing the measure by voice vote amidst noisy protest by the AIADMK members.
The Tamil Nadu Legislative Council Bill, 2010, was passed by the Rajya Sabha Wednesday. In 1986, the then AIADMK government headed by M.G. Ramachandran had abolished the state’s upper house.
The new legislative council will have 78 members.
Law Minister Veerappa Moily, while replying to a discussion on the bill, said parliament should approve the bill as it was approved by a state legislature. “Every state has the right to either have a second (upper house) or not,” he said.
DMK leader T.R. Baalu, who initiated the discussion, termed it a “historic” decision. He said the party’s manifesto had stated that an upper house would be created.
Strongly opposing the bill, AIADMK’s M. Thambudurai questioned why the Tamil Nadu government was in a hurry to pass the bill as elections to the state assembly were less than a year away.
BJP leader Shahnawaz Hussain said that there should be a uniform system on the matter of having a two houses. He said a majority of the state legislatures had only one house.
The Left parties and the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) also opposed the move.