Hyderabad : The first session of the third Assembly of Telangana state got underway on Saturday with 101 newly-elected MLAs being administered the oath of office by pro-tem Speaker Akbaruddin Owaisi.The BJP, however, boycotted the ceremony alleging a violation of Assembly rules by appointing Akbar as the pro-tem Speaker. Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy was the first to take the oath in Telugu, followed by Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka, who chose to take the oath in English.
Of the total 119 MLAs, 18 were absent during the ceremony, including two Cabinet ministers, Komatireddy Venkat Reddy and Uttam Kumar Reddy, as well as former chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao and former minister KT Rama Rao. Rama Rao informed the Assembly secretary that he would not be able to attend the oath-taking ceremony due to his father’s ill health.
KCR had undergone hip replacement surgery on Friday and has been advised three to four weeks of bed rest. The MLAs took their oaths in different languages, with the majority choosing Telugu, some opting for English, and AIMIM MLAs taking their oaths in Urdu, except for Ahmed Balala, who did so in English.
Akbar was sworn in as the pro-tem Speaker by Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan before the session began.In a rare sight, the chief minister and deputy chief minister personally greeted BRS and MIM MLAs before the oath-taking ceremony, shaking hands and exchanging pleasantries.
