Not a question of 'winning or losing', SC decision fulfills our demand: Sibal

Soon after former attorney general and the BJP lawyer said that the Congress failed in its attempt to remove pro tem speaker KG Bopaiah, senior leader of the grand old party Kapil Sibal said that the Supreme Court's decision to live telecast the floor test in Karnataka Assembly has fulfilled their demand.

"There is no question of winning or losing. We asked the Supreme Court to change the pro tem speaker but apex court said that they will have to give a notice first and for that the floor test in Karnataka had to be postponed. Hence, it was decided that to live telecast the trust vote in the Karnataka Assembly because we did not want the process to be delayed. And we are happy that the proceedings will be transparent," Sibal told the media.

Sibal also took a jibe at PM Modi and said, "Modi ji always says 'na khaoga na khaane dunga' (Will not allow corruption), but he has never said 'na khareedunga, na khareedne dunga' (will neither buy nor let others buy)."

The Supreme Court earlier today said K G Bopaiah will continue as the pro-tem speaker during the floor test. The court while rejecting a petition challenging his appointment said that the proceedings will be recorded and telecast live.

"The SC heard the pleas of the Congress, all their pleas have been rejected. The desperate attempts of Congress to remove him from post has failed. I think they are scared & did not even want a floor test in the first place," former attorney general and BJP's lawyer Mukul Rohatgi told the media after court decision.

The arguments began with Kapil Sibal challenging the appointment of Bopaiah. Starting with an apology for troubling the Bench on a Saturday, Sibal said that convention had been defied by appointing Bopaiah as he is not the senior most MLA in the House. Giving oaths is fine, but he is supervising the proceedings and that is a problem, Sibal said.

The Bench pointed out that the senior most in the House is not by age, but by the number of terms he or she has been elected. Sibal then raked up Bopaiah's past record when he had conducted two controversial trust votes in 2011. He said that the issue is not only to do with seniority, but also his past record.