BJP leaders meet Prez over ordinance protecting convicted MLAs, MPs

New Delhi, Sept 26: Top BJP leaders L K Advani, Sushma Swaraj, Arun Jaitley on Thursday reached Rashtrapati Bhavan to meet President Pranab Mukherjee to express its opposition to the ordinance passed by the Centre providing protection to convicted lawmakers.

According to reports, the BJP leaders will urge President Pranab Mukherjee not to give his consent to the "unconstitutional" measure.

"We have put in our request for a meeting. We are meeting Rashtrapatiji either Thursday or Friday against Ordinance for convicted MPs," BJP leader Sushma Swaraj had tweeted.

Government cleared the Ordinance on Wednesday to undo a two-month-old Supreme Court verdict under which MPs and MLAs face immediate disqualification on their conviction in a criminal case with a jail term of two years.

"Union Cabinet has approved Ordinance on convicted MPs. We are opposed to this. We request the President not to sign this Ordinance," Swaraj, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, said.

L K Advani, Sushma Swaraj, Arun Jaitley have gone to meet Prez Pranab Mukherjee.

"We are against the contents of the Ordinance. That is the reason we said it is unconstitutional. President is not obliged to sign an Ordinance that is unconstitutional," she added.

The Supreme Court had on July 10 ruled that an MP or an MLA would stand disqualified immediately if convicted by a court for crimes with punishment of two years or more.

OneIndia News

(With agency inputs)