With only two days left for the legislature session to commence, the Upper House is witnessing hectic political activities following the decision by the Congress to dislodge Chairman D.H. Shankaramurthy from his post and counter efforts by the latter to retain it.
A group of Congress MLCs have submitted notices seeking permission to table a no-confidence motion against the chairman. The latter has responded by issuing show-cause notices to six Congress and two Janata Dal (S) MLCs asking for an explanation as to why they should not be disqualified for allegedly claiming travelling allowances against norms and voting in different areas in local body polls.
Mr. Shankaramurthy issued show-cause notices following a petition submitted by Padmanabha Reddy, Leader of the Opposition in BBMP, seeking their disqualification from the Upper House for allegedly voting in the 2016 BBMP mayoral polls even though they were not registered voters.
Though Mr. Reddy submitted the petition on May 20, Mr. Shankaramurthy issued notices to them on June 1, after Congress members submitted a notice regarding no-confidence motion. The issue has become complex with none of the parties having absolute majority in the 75-member House. Though the Congress has more numerical strength than others, it still needs the support of JD(S) to call the shots.
Discounting the possibility of disqualification of MLCs citing provisions of The Representation of the People Act and Constitution, V. S. Ugrappa, Congress MLC and one of the signatories, said: “The Chairman cannot take unilateral decision and has to refer the issue to the ethics panel.” M.D. Lakshminarayana, another MLC, said all eight MLCs have consulted constitutional and legal experts. “Following their advice, we have replied to the notice and sought four week’s time, while refuting the charges made against us.”
A senior leader on condition of anonymity said that even if Mr. Shankaramurthy disqualifies MLCs circumventing ethics of House and violating norms for ‘political reasons’, the party has a strategy in place to dislodge him from the post.
