Goa Speaker acted according to Constitution : Congress

New Delhi, July 30 (UNI) The Congress today defended the action of Goa Assembly Speaker Pratapsinh Rane that led to the survival of the 53-day-old Digambar Kamat government, and said the interim decision of the Chair was as mandated by the Constitution.

AICC Spokesman Abishek Manu Singhvi told mediapersons that the Speaker had acted within his powers under the tenth Schedule of the Constitution when he passed an "interim order" restraining rebel Congress MLA Victoria Fernandes and two Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP) members from voting on the motion of confidence moved by the Chief Minister.

He said the Congress had filed a complaint before the Speaker against Ms Fernandes on July 25 seeking her disqualification for defying party whip on the floor of the house the previous day.

The two MGP MLAs had written a letter supposedly withdrawing support to the Congress government, though the party had not withdrawn the resolution adopted at the party's General Council meeting pledging support to the Kamat government. A complaint had also been filed before the Speaker against the two MGP MLAs who had acted at variance with the stand of their party.

Since a decision on these two issues were pending before the Speaker, he had issued an interim order today.

"The Speaker is entitled to pass interim orders. In this case, the Chair has interim adjudicated the issue and he has to finally adjudicate it." Referring to the political crisis in Goa, Dr Singhvi said the Congress did not start the destabilisation process in the state. "In fact, destabilisation process started as a result of vested interests to achieve self serving ends...it is all relating to land issues and revival of the regional plan..." UNI