More than a dozen copies of Telangana bill was torn into pieces by MLAs opposing bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh, in the state assembly today. Telangana and Seemandhra MLAs got into tussle over the bill as the assembly was adjourned following ruckus. The opposition parties stalled the  proceedings over the bill for the formation of separate Telangana state sent by president President Pranab Mukherjee for its views.

As soon as the house met for the day, legislators surrounded the speaker's podium, holding placards and shouting slogans. Amid utter pandemonium, speaker Nadendla Manohar adjourned the house for an hour.

While Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) wanted the speaker to immediately take up the Telangana bill for debate, main opposition Telugu Desam Party (TDP) moved an adjournment motion demanding debate on the manner in which the central and state governments are handling the issue of state's bifurcation.

The YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) members had moved an adjournment motion, urging the speaker to pass a resolution in the house to ask the central government to keep the state united.

Repeated appeals by the speaker to restore order in the house fell on deaf ears, leaving no option but to adjourn the house for an hour.

The house had adjourned without any business on Friday on the same issue. The draft Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Bill, 20,13 reached the assembly Friday.

The bill was sent to president Pranab Mukherjee by the union cabinet on Dec 5 with a request to refer it to Andhra Pradesh assembly to seek its views under Article 3 of the constitution. The bill reached Hyderabad on Dec 12.

Outside the assembly too, tempers ran high as legislators from the Telugu Desam Party and YSR Congress tore and burnt copies of the bill. Telangana MLAs said it was an insult to them.

MLAs from the Telangana region want the bill to be discussed right away and sent back to the president for further processing. Those from the Seemandhra region - as Coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema together are known - have wanted the Bill tabled and discussed only in January.

The draft Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Bill-2013 seeks to create Telangana, India's 29th state, by splitting Andhra Pradesh. It has been sent to the Andhra Pradesh assembly not for a vote but to gather views on it and is returnable to the president by January 23.

Politicians from Telangana want the process hastened by sending the Bill back immediately so that the central government have a shot at passing it in the ongoing winter Session of parliament which ends this Friday.

The MLAs from Seemandhra, who oppose the bifurcation of the state, want to delay the process to ensure that parliament is unable to take up the Bill before general elections due by May.

They point out that since there can be no voting on the draft bill sent by the president, those opposed to it would like a separate resolution to be taken up and voted upon to highlight the numerical strength of those who want the state to remain united.

There are 119 MLAs from Telangana and 175 from Seemandhra in the Andhra Pradesh assembly.

Any vote against Telangana on the floor of the House will be an embarrassment to both the President and the Congress-led UPA government. The Union Cabinet had cleared the Bill on December 5, and the Centre has promised to bring it before Parliament in this winter session.   

The assembly's winter session may be extended or a special session could be called on the Telangana issue