The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : Speaker urged to include Congress MLAs on Ramaswamy panel

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Thursday, Nov 23, 2006
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Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

Speaker urged to include Congress MLAs on Ramaswamy panel

Special Correspondent

`Appoint Ramalinga Reddy, Krishnappa and Shivakumar'

MAKING A PLEA: A Congress delegation led by KPCC president M. Mallikarjun Kharge with Speaker Krishna at the Vidhana Soudha in Bangalore on Wednesday. — Photo: V. Sreenivasa Murthy

BANGALORE: The State Congress leaders on Wednesday brought to the notice of Legislative Assembly Speaker Krishna "non-inclusion" of the party's MLAs from Bangalore City in the Joint Legislature Committee headed by A.T. Ramaswamy, MLA.

The committee was constituted to inquire into the encroachment of Government land in and around the city.

A Congress team led by Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Assembly N. Dharam Singh met the Speaker at his chamber and urged him to appoint MLAs Ramalinga Reddy, A. Krishnappa and D.K. Shivakumar as members of the panel.

Mr. Dharam Singh said that the Speaker had to appoint only those MLAs recommended by the party, but had appointed B. Shivaram, S.S. Patil and R. Roshan Baig on his own. Later, Mr. Patil and Mr. Shivaram had resigned.

`No appointments'

Although he had informed the Speaker about resignation of the two members during the special Legislature session in Belgaum, no appointments had been made, Mr. Dharam Singh alleged.

Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee president Mallikarjun Kharge said the Speaker had given an assurance that the committee would be reconstituted in a week.

Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Council H.K. Patil, and Congress MLAs R.V. Deshpande, D.K. Shivakumar, N.L. Narendrababu and Dinesh Gundu Rao were part of the delegation.

Mr. Krishna told presspersons that he had absolute power on appointing members to the Joint Legislature Committee. The opinion of the Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Assembly was not binding on the Speaker. There were allegations of land grabbing against Mr. Krishnappa and Mr. Shivakumar, he said.

The Speaker said he would consult legal and constitutional experts and appoint two Congress MLAs to the committee soon.

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