CONG-JD(S) approach SC, say Bopaiah as Speaker unfair
NEW DELHI: The Congress-janata Dal (Secular) combine approached the Supreme Court on Friday challenging Karnataka governor Vajubhai Vala’s decision to appoint KG Bopaiah as the pro-tem Speaker of the assembly to conduct the crucial floor test in Karnataka.
Lawyers involved in drafting of the petition said the documents were submitted to the SC registrar court and they were awaiting a confirmation for the hearing. An official of the SC who refused to be named said the matter could be taken up on Saturday morning. The Congress-jd(s) said in the petition that the governor’s decision was against the settled convention to appoint the seniormost MLA as the pro-tem or temporary Speaker. “Seniority is not in terms of age but is decided on the basis of how many times you have been an MLA,” a lawyer from the team of advocates who prepared the petition said on the condition of anonymity.
Bopaiah’s appointment is a blatant move to manipulate voting on trust motion, read the petition that has also asked for video recording of the voting, a plea the SC had declined on Friday.
On the appointment of the protem Speaker, Union human resource development minister Prakash Javadekar said in a tweet: “Shri KG Bopaiah was appointed as Pro Tem speaker even in 2008 by the then Governor. That time Bopaiah was 10 years younger than what he is today. The Congress is thus raising hoax objection. The appointment of Bopaiah Ji is as per rules and regulations.”
The post-poll alliance partners fear manipulation of voting during the trust motion and have sought voting by division through segregation of MLAS supporting and opposing the motion in different lobbies. According to the petition, Bopaiah is not qualified to be the pro-tem Speaker also because he has been indicted by the SC in 2010 for allegedly fudging a confi- dence vote in favour of BS Yedyurappa. Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said SC had categorically held that Bopaiah “violated the constitution and “negated the procedure of law.”
“This is the third encounter of the Constitution by the governor at the instance of PM Narendra Modi and BJP president Amit Shah,” Surjewala told reporters. “But the trio of Modi, Shah and Vala — helping the Yeddy-reddy gang — will not be permitted to subjugate democracy.” Calling Bopaiah “dented and tainted”, Surjewala said the governor should have appointed seniormost legislator RV Deshpande as the pro-tem Speaker. “Though eight-time legislator Deshpande belongs to the Congress, the opposition too has always sworn by his reputation and neutrality.” “The court had held that he had acted in a partisan fashion and acted post-haste to help Yedyurappa. He violated all norms of fair procedure and natural justice. That is what the 172-page judgment held,” Surjewala added.
As per the petition, it has been a convention that the senior-most MLA is appointed as a pro-tem Speaker, a term not defined in the Constitution or the rules of the business of assembly. “Since we act in the Westminster system, convention has a force of law. There are two Supreme Court judgments enforcing it,” Surjewala explained.