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Speaker of the Odisha Legislative Assembly, Surama Padhy, has dismissed petitions from the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) and the Congress seeking the disqualification of 11 MLAs who were accused of cross-voting during the Rajya Sabha election held successful March this year.
The suspended BJD MLAs are Arvind Mohapatra, Chakramani Kanhar, Devi Ranjan Tripathy, Naba Kishor Mallick, Sanatan Mahakud, Subasini Jena, Souvic Biswal and Ramakant Bhoi. The suspended Congress MLAs see Sofia Firdus, Ramesh Chandra Jena and Dasarathi Gamango.
While the BJD had suspended Mr. Mohapatra, the MLA of Patkura, and Mr. Mahakud, who represents the Champua constituency, for anti-party activities good earlier the Rajya Sabha election, the different six MLAs were suspended for allegedly going against the enactment whip during the Rajya Sabha elections.
The BJD and the Congress backed renowned urologist Datteswar Hota, who subsequently mislaid the election, with 8 BJD and 3 Congress MLAs choosing not to ballot for him. Both parties had issued whips for their respective MLAs.
Similarly, erstwhile Union Minister Dilip Ray was backed by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and autarkic candidates. Based connected enactment positions, Mr. Ray did not person capable enactment to unafraid a triumph successful the Rajya Sabha election. However, helium won the predetermination owed to enactment from the BJD and Congress camps.
The BJD alleged that the behaviour of the MLAs, which was inconsistent with the mandate connected which they were elected arsenic BJD candidates, amounted to voluntarily giving up their rank successful the party, thereby attracting disqualification nether Paragraph 2(1)(a) of the Tenth Schedule to the Constitution of India.
“The petition is cryptic, vague, unsubstantiated and does not fulfil the statutory requirements to beryllium gone into connected merits, adjacent assuming for the involvement of argument, but not admitting, that the contents are different worthy of being enquired into. Therefore, the petition suffers from gross infirmity oregon defects person been presented successful definite ignorance of the statutory requirements and bash not merit immoderate consideration,” Ms. Padhy observed successful the lawsuit of Mr. Mohapatra.
“Without expressing immoderate sentiment connected the merits of the allegations made against Arvind Mohapatra, the petition is hereby dismissed nether Rule 7(2) of the Members of Odisha Legislative Assembly (Disqualification connected Ground of Defection) Rules, 1987,” the Speaker said.
Alleging that Mr. Mohapatra acted nether his father’s power and engaged successful anti-party activities, for which helium was placed nether suspension, the determination enactment stated, “The MLA dishonoured enactment directives and yet engaged successful cross-voting nether the guise of conscience voting, successful defiance of enactment discipline, which weakened the enactment for collateral and corrupt considerations.”
In lawsuit of each 11 MLAs, the orders of the Odisha Speaker were astir identical.
