21 Congress members suspended from Legislative Council in Karnataka

Angry with the Congress members of the Legislative Council in Karnataka for stalling the proceedings of the House for nine consecutive days, officiating Chairman N Thippanna ordered the suspension of 21 members, setting up a clash between the Opposition and the ruling coalition over the presiding officer’s constitutional propriety.

Thippanna named 21 Congress MLCs including Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Council H K Patil on Tuesday evening and ordered their suspension from the House for the rest of the session, forcing the Congress leaders to march to Raj Bhavan yesterday morning and seek Governor T N Chaturvedi’s intervention in the matter.

The Congress MLCs had been opposing the ruling JD (S)-BJP coalition’s “unilateral decision” to elevate senior JD (S) leader N Thippanna as the acting Chairman of Legislative Council in place of Vice Chairman Sachidanand Khot, who is indisposed. The term of earlier Chairman V R Sudarshan, a Congressman, ended a couple of months ago.

The Congress members had been disrupting the proceedings of the Legislative Council since the joint legislature session began ten days ago. The Congress, which enjoys a majority in the Legislative Council, has been seeking an election to choose a Chairman for the Legislative Council.

The suspension of 21 Congress members in the Legislative Council reverberated in the Legislative Assembly yesterday with Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly Dharam Singh and Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee President M Mallikarjun Kharge taking strong exception to Thippanna’s “unprecedented” act.

After the Congress delegation met the Governor, Dharam Singh told reporters that Governor is the constitution head of the State and the party leaders had requested him to intervene in the matter.

Congress leader H K Patil said the Constitution was facing a threat from the ruling minority in the Legislative Council. “The ruling minority is indulging in an exhibition of muscle power against the majority Opposition. Thippanna has no locus standi to sit in the Chairman’s seat. He has committed a criminal offence”, Patil said.
But, Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister M P Prakash defended the Government’s decision to appoint Thippanna as the pro-tem Chairman of the Legislative Council. “We have followed the rules. Thippanna can discharge the duties of a Chairman under constitutional provisions and we have obtained a clarification from the Secretary-General of the Rajya Sabha in the regard”, he said.