Reconvening UP monsoon session under constitutional norms: Speaker

Lucknow, Jan 10 (UNI) The ongoing tussle between the Raj Bhawan and the Mulayam Singh Yadav government seems imminent after Uttar Pradesh assembly Speaker Mata Prasad Pandey tonight said that reconvening the monsoon session was well within the constitutional norms and the government's decision to revert its order to prorogue the house has legal valadity.

Mr Pandey said he has not received any official communication about proroguing the house by Governor T V Rajeswar and nor is he constitutionally bound to issue the notification without any official order.

''The decision of the state cabinet to roll back its earlier January 3 decision to prorogue the assembly was well within the constitutional rights of the government and no one can challenge it,'' he said.

''The government has all the right to reconvene the assembly from January 15 as the notification to prorogue the house is yet to be issued.

''The decision to reconvene the house was taken on January 9 while it has been said that Governor has given his assent to the order to prorogue the house on January 10,'' he said.

When asked if the Governor sent any letter to the Speaker over the issue, Mr Pandey said the Speaker is not bound to accept any order of the Governor which is not under constitutional norms. ''We will only read out the letter in the assembly, if required,'' he added.

To a querry if notification to prorogue the house was mandatory by the Speaker, he said that till date no official communication has been recieved by the Assembly secretriat on the Governor's assent.

Earlier the ruling Samajwadi party leaders said the Governor's decision to prorogue the house has no legal sanctity till the notification for the same was issued by the Speaker.

UNI