How did the ‘Amaravati Bill’ come into place?

The story so far:

On April 2, Parliament passed the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation (Amendment) Bill, 2026, to recognise Amaravati as the sole and permanent capital of Andhra Pradesh. There was broad political consensus regarding the passing of the Bill, with even the principal Opposition party, the Congress, extending support to it. Only the YSR Congress Party (YSRCP), which had earlier proposed a three-capital plan for the State, opposed it.

What is the background of this Bill?

The undivided State of Andhra Pradesh was bifurcated in 2014 with the passing of the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014. This facilitated the creation of the State of Telangana and residual Andhra Pradesh. The Act specified that Hyderabad could be used as the capital by both the States for a period not exceeding 10 years, after which Andhra Pradesh had to establish its own capital.

After the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) came to power in Andhra Pradesh in 2014, Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu declared that Amaravati would be the new capital of the State and moved his administration out of Hyderabad. However, the project fell into a limbo after the YSRCP came to power in 2019 and proposed three capitals instead: Visakhapatnam as the executive capital, Amaravati as the legislative capital, and Kurnool as the judicial capital.

In March 2022, a three-judge Bench of the Andhra Pradesh High Court ruled that the capital could not be shifted out of Amaravati, primarily on the ground that the State lacked the legislative competence required to reverse a policy decision taken in 2014-15. The YSRCP government challenged the High Court judgment in the Supreme Court by filing a Special Leave Petition (SLP).

The SLP was pending when the NDA returned to power in the State. The Naidu government filed an affidavit in late 2024 in the apex court, affirming its commitment to develop Amaravati as the capital. The SLP, filed by the YSRCP government, is in the process of being withdrawn, in alignment with the present government’s vision of building a greenfield capital.

What does the Bill say?

On March 28, 2026, the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly adopted a resolution requesting the Union government to grant statutory recognition to Amaravati as the State’s sole capital. The resolution sought an amendment to Section 5 of the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014, to explicitly name Amaravati as the capital and end the ambiguity caused by previous three-capital proposals. Following the request, the Union government introduced the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation (Amendment) Bill, 2026.

As mandated by Section 5 of the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014, Hyderabad served as the joint capital for Telangana and Andhra Pradesh for a decade starting June 2, 2014. This arrangement concluded on June 2, 2024, after which Hyderabad became the exclusive capital of Telangana, leaving Andhra Pradesh to establish a new capital.

The new Bill seeks to declare and notify Amaravati as the sole capital city of Andhra Pradesh with effect from June 2, 2024, by inserting the words “at Amaravati” to Section 5(2) of the 2014 Act and adding the phrase “and Amaravati includes the capital city areas notified under the Andhra Pradesh Capital Region Development Authority Act, 2014” to the explanation to Section 5.

Why amend the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014?

Amending the Act is essential because the genesis of the capital of the successor State of Andhra Pradesh lies in this Central legislation. Amaravati needed to be explicitly recognised as the capital with statutory backing. The State government believed that the only way to prevent a future dispensation from shifting or splitting the capital was to amend the Act.

Why has the YSRCP opposed the Bill?

YSRCP MPs said they were not opposed to the Bill declaring Amaravati as the capital, but were unhappy with its “present form,” as it allegedly ignores unfulfilled promises, especially with regard to the Land Pooling Scheme. This involves the voluntary contribution of land by farmers in exchange for smaller, developed, and high-value plots, making them partners in the development process. The YSRCP has argued that the interests of farmers who had parted with land for the capital project remain unaddressed. Party member P.V. Midhun Reddy said a clear timeline must be provided for compensating farmers and incorporated into the Bill.

The Andhra Pradesh government believed that the only way to prevent a future dispensation from shifting or splitting the capital was to amend the Reorganisation Act.