Rebel MLAs seek recognition as BSP members; Hearing on Mar 22

Lucknow, Mar 11 (UNI) Five rebel MLAs including two Uttar Pradesh ministers, who had tendered their resignation from the Mulayam Singh Yadav government, today submitted a petition before assembly speaker Mata Prasad Pandey to recognise them as BSP members in the house.

The five MLAs -- Jaiveer Singh, Ramji Shukla, Surendra Vikram Singh, Dharampal Singh and Ramkrishna -- today approached the speaker to recognise them as BSP members after the Allahabad High Court quashed the decision of the Speaker of the split in the BSP and merger of the rebel group with the Samajwadi Party.

Meanwhile, the Speaker fixed March 22 as the next date of hearing the rebel MLAs case. The hearing started today following a HC verdict on February 28 last.

On Thursday, BSP filed a writ petiton before the speaker seeking disqualification of 33 party MLAs for violating party whip.

The move comes in wake of the BSP issuing a whip to its rebel MLAs for their presence in the house alongwith other members on March 8.

The party had pasted the whip at the residences of those MLAs, who refused to accept the same. The handing over of the whip was also filmed in this case.

''After the High Court quashed the Speaker's verdict of September 6 and 9, 2003 and September 7, 2005, all the 38 MLAs now belong to BSP and not Samajwadi Party,'' BSP legislature party leader Swami Prasad Maurya said adding, of the 38, five had already rejoined the BSP, hence the rest should be disqualified for violating the whip.

The BSP had charged the Speaker with playing a partisan role when Mr Pandey -- in his interim order -- had declared the BSP rebels would continue to share seats with the Treasury benches for the time being.

Mr Maurya reiterated his party would continue its demand inside and outside the house for recognising the rebel MLAs as BSP members after the HC judgement.

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