Cong MLA points finger at Speaker
Source: The Sangai Express
Imphal, June 19 2020:
Congress MLA K Meghachandra has accused Manipur Legislative Assembly Speaker Y Khemchand of blatantly flouting all democratic principles by disqualifying four MLAs just ahead of the start of voting for election to the State's lone Rajya Sabha seat.
Speaking to media persons within the State Assembly complex today, K Meghachandra said that the four MLAs were disqualified at a time when the voting for election to the State's lone Rajya Sabha seat was just about to begin.
Three Congress MLAs namely; Ksh Biren, Sanasam Bira and Y Surchandra and All Indian Trinamool Congress MLA T Robindro were disqualified by the Speaker's Tribunal today.
Meghachandra alleged that the four MLAs were disqualified by the Speaker's Tribunal in total contravention of the directive issued by the High Court of Manipur.
"I think Speaker Y Khemchand is no longer a lawful citizen of India as he defied the High Court's directive and disqualified the four MLAs", said the Congress MLA.
Pointing out that Trinamool Congress MLA T Robindro was not facing any disqualification case, he went on to ask as to why and on what ground T Robindro was disqualified by the Speaker's Tribunal all of a sudden.
The way T Robindro has been disqualified is undemocratic and untenable, he decried.
Saying that they would file a petition at the Court against the unlawful conduct of the Speaker, Meghachandra said that no notice was served on the disqualified MLAs including T Robindro.
He further accused two MLAs of voting in favour of BJP in contravention of the guidelines issued by the ECI, and asserted that their votes should be declared invalid.
Complaints have been lodged with the ECI as well as the polling room election authority regarding the matter, he said.
Even as seven MLAs were facing the same disqualification case, the Speaker's Tribunal adopted three different decisions and these decisions were highly discriminatory and biased, he alleged.
Meanwhile, MLA Paonam Brojen claimed that the election held today went off smoothly without any major glitches.
"Even though seven MLAs were barred from entering the State Assembly by a single bench of the High Court of Manipur, the same order was lifted by a Double Bench of the same Court.
As such, I was also given the voting right", Brojen said.
Meanwhile Works Minister Th Biswajit exuded confidence that BJP would secure the State's lone Rajya Sabha seat.
Even though some people have left the BJP-led coalition, the remaining BJP MLAs are united and this was testified by the Rajya Sabha election held today, Biswajit said.
People may be thinking that there are deep cracks within BJP but it is just an internal matter of the party, he added.