AP first cabinet meet: TLN Sabha Hall jinxed !

By SNV Sudhir

Visakhapatnam, June 10, 2014: While the local officials have got onto the ground and started preparations to conduct the maiden state cabinet meeting at TLN Sabha Hall of Andhra University, the place seems to be jinxed.

The first Andhra Assembly session was held in May 1954 at the same TLN Sabha Hall and during those sessions, a no confidence motion was served to the Tanguturi Prakasam’s government and subsequently the motion won.

Prakasam’s government fell with shortage of one vote. Though the government fell in the subsequent Assembly session held at Kurnool, the first government of Andhra which has begun its activities at TLN Sabha Hall had to windup in les than a year. The next state Assembly polls were held in February, 1955. 

After the new Andhra state was formed on October 1, 1953 with Telugu speaking 11 northern districts, of erstwhile madras state, the first summer session of the state assembly was held at Vizag’s TLN Sabha Hall, though the capital was Kurnool.  The then chief minister of Andhra state, Tanguturi Prakasam has taken the decision to hold the Assembly session in Vizag in May, 1954. 

A few days after the Assembly session has begun at TLN Sabha Hall on May 27, Legislative Communist Party (LCP) leader Tarimela Nagi Reddy has moved a no confidence motion against the government, on the then Prohibition Bill. As per records, it was the first no confidence motion moved in the Andhra Pradesh Assembly and so far, 10 such motions were moved. 

The 1954 no confidence motion was supported by Gouthu Lachana of Krishikar Lok Party and P Venkateshwarulu of LCP.  However the House has accepted the Motion on Nov 3, 1954 during the sessions held at Guntur and the then Speaker of the Andhra Assembly, N Venkataramaiah has allowed discussion on it from Nov 4 to 6.

After the discussion in which 46 out of the total 140 members of the Assembly have got the chance to express their views, 69 MLAs voted in favour of the Motion. As many as 68 voted against the motion and one member abstained from the voting which led to the fall of Tanguturi Prakasam's government.

 “It has a history of doom to the new government. The then state government had to fall in less than a year. Its better the venue for the maiden state cabinet meeting is changed. We have come to power after a long gap of 10 years,” rued a TD leader about the TLN Sabha Hall.

 The Hall in the Andhra University came into existence from 1939.