Imphal: The Manipur Assembly Speaker's tribunal issued separate notices to four National People's Party (NPP) MLAs in the anti-defection case, asking them to furnish written comments by February 11 and attend the hearing on February 12, officials said on Thursday. An Assembly official said that the notice was issued to the four NPP legislators following Manipur state Congress Vice-President Hareshwar Goswami's petition before the tribunal seeking disqualification of the four NPP legislators from the Assembly.
Congress leader Goswami, a retired bureaucrat, last month filed disqualification petitions before the Speaker's tribunal against the four NPP MLAs for extending support to the BJP-led government, even as the party officially snapped ties with the government in November last year. Goswami's lead counsel, N. Bupenda Meitei, said that his client (the petitioner) had filed disqualification petitions against four NPP MLAs for extending support to the BJP-led government in the state.
"The four MLAs attended a meeting of the ruling BJP legislators in November last year. The meeting was convened by Chief Minister N. Biren Singh, despite NPP National President (Conrad K. Sangma) and his party (NPP) having withdrawn support from the BJP government in Manipur," Meitei had said.
The 4 NPP MLAs are Mayanglambam Rameshwar Singh, Thongam Shanti Singh, Irengbam Nalini Devi, and Janghemlung Panmei. The NPP, led by Meghalaya Chief Minister Sangma, had on November 17 last year withdrawn support to the BJP-led government in Manipur, claiming that the CM Biren Singh-led Manipur government "completely failed to resolve the crisis and restore normalcy" in the violence-ravaged state.
The NPP had seven MLAs in the 60-member Manipur Assembly. The withdrawal by the NPP, however, did not have any impact on Chief Minister Biren Singh-led Manipur government, as the BJP has 37 MLAs' support in the 60-member Assembly and is also supported by five MLAs of the Naga People's Front (NPF) and three Independents. (IANS)
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