Congress rebels meet Speaker: disqualification issue

Pressure is mounting on Assembly Speaker Nandendla Manohar with YSR group also pressing for their disqualification as they have openly defied the party whip and voted in favour of the no confidence motion.

Even as the complaint lodged by Congress Legislature Party (CLP) to take action against the erring legislators was pending with the Speaker, the same group against which action is pending went in a delegation to the Speaker and asked him to expedite the issue paving way for  by-elections.

Narsapuram MLA Mudunuri Prasada Raju, who led the 12-member delegation, told reporters on Monday that they asked the Speaker to dispose of their disqualification issue at the earliest.

Prasada Raju said that the Speaker responded positively and assured that a decision would be taken by December 31. Some of the legislators who could not make it to meet the Speaker today will be sending in their written statement by December 29, he said.

“We have voted in favour of no trust motion as the government totally failed to address the farmers’ issues and adopting anti-farmer policies and will go to the people raising the same issue,” he said.

The legislators earlier had a meeting in the party office before meeting the Speaker. 

With Congress and the rebels appealing for the same cause, it remains to be seen how the Speaker will handle the issue which will have electoral consequences.