What happened: Lok Sabha Secretariat issues notices to 20 defecting MPs
The Lok Sabha Secretariat issued notices to 20 Members of Parliament who switched from Trinamool Congress to the Nationalist Citizens Party of India (NCPI).
The reported linkage in the dispute is that Trinamool Congress general secretary Abhishek Banerjee wrote to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla urging disqualification of the legislators. The notices were reported as being sent more than a month after Banerjee’s request.
Background and earlier position: disqualification petitions filed on June 19 under Rule 6
Abhishek Banerjee filed disqualification petitions against the 20 MPs on June 19 under Rule 6 of the Members of Lok Sabha (Disqualification on Ground of Defection) Rules, 1985.
A Supreme Court bench led by Chief Justice Surya Kant and including Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V. Mohana agreed to hear Banerjee’s plea seeking an expeditious decision on pending disqualification petitions. The Supreme Court bench was also attentive to completing the proceedings within a time frame.
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