The Lok Sabha is likely to take up a notice seeking the removal of Speaker Om Birla when Parliament meets for the second phase of the Budget session on March 9.
If the motion is taken up, Birla will not preside over the proceedings. Instead, he will sit among members while the House debates the resolution.
The Congress said the notice has been moved according to parliamentary rules and conventions, and that Opposition MPs have cited instances of what they called “partisan behaviour” by the Speaker.
Speaking with PTI, Congress general secretary in-charge of communications Jairam Ramesh said, “All the opposition parties other than the Trinamool Congress have signed the motion for the removal of the speaker. Let us see. They have said it's going to be taken up on March 9.”
He added that 118 Opposition MPs from several parties signed the notice.
“It’s a healthy, democratic practice. We have submitted a motion, which is according to the rules, according to the conventions… There have been previous occasions, for example, in 1954, when the combined opposition strength was hardly 50, and the Congress had 364 MPs in a House of 489. A no-confidence motion was brought against the speaker, the great G. V. Mavalankar," Ramesh said.
“These are democratic instruments, instruments of parliamentary democracy. The opposition has every right. We'll have a debate, let's see what happens after that," the Congress leader said.
“We had given specific instances of partisan behaviour (by the speaker), while false allegations were levelled against the opposition members. We have given the context, and a debate should take place,” Ramesh said.
The Congress has issued a whip asking its MPs to be present in the Lok Sabha from March 9 to 11, when the notice is expected to come up.
The notice was submitted to the Lok Sabha Secretariat by Congress deputy leader Gaurav Gogoi, chief whip K. Suresh and whip Mohammed Javed on behalf of several opposition parties, including the Samajwadi Party and the DMK.
Trinamool Congress MPs did not sign the notice. The Opposition resolution alleges that Birla acted in a “blatantly partisan” manner while conducting the business of the House and “abused” the constitutional office he occupies.
Opposition members have referred to incidents such as not allowing Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi and other MPs to speak during the motion of thanks to the President’s address and the suspension of eight Opposition MPs.
Under Article 96 of the Constitution, a Speaker or Deputy Speaker cannot preside over the House when a resolution for their removal is under consideration.
Constitution expert P D T Achary said Birla will have the right to defend himself during the debate. He will also have the right to vote against the resolution.
While he will not chair the proceedings, Birla is expected to sit in the front rows on the treasury benches when the motion is discussed. Birla had stopped chairing the House after the notice was submitted.
For such a motion, at least two Lok Sabha members must sign the notice, though more members can join. The Speaker can be removed if the resolution is passed by a simple majority of members present and voting, as provided under Article 94.
Normally, the language of the resolution is examined by the Deputy Speaker. Since the current Lok Sabha does not have one, it may be examined by the senior-most member of the panel of chairpersons, who preside over the House in the Speaker’s absence.
Such motions are rare. Three Lok Sabha Speakers - G. V. Mavlankar in 1954, Hukam Singh in 1966 and Balram Jakhar in 1987, faced no-confidence motions in the past. All three were defeated in the House.
