CPI denies ''needling'' Somnath

Hyderabad, Oct 27 (UNI) Denying any harassment of Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee by the Left Parties, Communist Party of India National Assistant General Secretary S Sudhakar Reddy today opined the Speaker should have allowed the adjournment motion, sought to be moved by the Left parties on the anti-Christian violence in Orissa and Karnataka, which required voting.

Addressing the press here, the CPI leader said, ''The Left parties did not insult the Chair. We have great respect for the Chair. We have no ulterior political motive to harass the Speaker.'' He, however, found fault with the Speaker for disallowing the Breach of Privelege Motion, sought to be moved by the Left parties against Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for allegedly not keeping his assurance to the House to take it into confidence before signing the Indo-US Nuclear Deal with the US government.

Though the Prime Minister was a member of the Upper House, the Manmohan Singh Government was answerable for allegedly misleading the House on the nuclear issue, he said.

''The Speaker, instead of rejecting the motion, should have forwarded it to the Rajya Sabha for consideration,'' he felt.

The Speaker on October 24 had abruptly left the House, alleging the Chair was being insulted.

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