Congress serves no confidence motion against Orissa Assembly Speaker

Bhubaneswar, Mar 10 (UNI) The Opposition Congress has served a no confidence motion notice against Assembly Speaker Maheswar Mohanty in the wake of a criminal case filed against him for violating of the code of conduct during the panchayat election in the state.

The decision to move the no confidence motion against the Speaker was taken at a meeting of the Congress Legislature party at the residence of Leader of Opposition J B Pattnaik here last night.

The motion notice was submitted to the office of the Assembly Secretary in view of the Assembly session beginning here from March 21.

The Congress alleged that since a criminal case has been lodged as per the direction of the State Election Commission(SEC) against the Speaker for violation of code of conduct during the Panchayat election, and a crime branch inquiry has been ordered into the incident by the SEC, the Speaker should step down from the chair to keep the dignity of the Assembly.

The Congress Legislature Party has also decided to meet Orissa Governor Rameswar Thakur on March 19 and urge him not to address the session as long as Mr Mohanty was holding the Speaker's post.

It has also decided that Congress members in the house would not attend any proceedings other than obituary references if the no confidence motion was not taken up during the session.

Meanwhile, Orissa Pradesh Congress Committee President Jayadev Jena claimed that all the opposition political parties in the Assembly have unanimously agreed to move the motion against the Speaker who, he said, had lost the moral right to continue in the post, in view of the registration of a criminal case against him.

Former Lok Sabha Speaker Rabi Ray, in a statement here, said Mr Mohanty should resign in the wake of serious allegations levelled against him during the Panchayat elections.

The Speaker, Mr Ray said, was the symbol of prestige and dignity of the state assembly, adding that he should resign from the post of the Speaker of the Assembly keeping in view the age-old principle of ''Caesar's wife must remain above suspicion''.

A criminal case has been registered against the Speaker on the direction of the SEC after election materials of the ruling BJD were seized from the Assembly vehicle during the Panchayat election last month.

UNI