Resolution seeking removal of Om Birla as Speaker defeated by voice vote in Lok Sabha
New Delhi (PTI): The resolution seeking the removal of Om Birla as Speaker was on Wednesday defeated in Lok Sabha by a voice vote.
Amid protests and sloganeering by the opposition seeking an apology from Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Jagdambika Pal, who was in the chair, announced that the no-confidence motion was defeated.
Pal urged the opposition to take their seats so that he could put the motion to vote. But as the protests continued, he sought the vote of the House and the resolution was rejected by a voice vote, following which he adjourned the House for the day.
Earlier, the home minister hit out at the opposition for bringing the motion for the removal of Birla as Speaker.
The opposition objected to certain remarks of Shah and started shouting slogans, disrupted the proceedings and sought an apology from him.
Responding to the two-day-long debate, Shah asserted that the House will be run by its own rules and not by the rules of a party.
"It is not an ordinary occurrence as after nearly four decades, such a motion has been brought against the speaker," he said.
The home minister said it was unfortunate for parliamentary politics that some opposition parties were questioning the integrity of the speaker.
Shah said the BJP has been in the opposition for the longest period of time, but the party has never brought a no-confidence motion against any speaker.
"According to the established history of this House, its proceedings are conducted on the basis of mutual trust. The speaker serves as a neutral custodian, representing both the ruling party and the opposition. It is unfortunate for parliamentary politics that a resolution for the removal of the speaker has come," he said.
Shah said the opposition raised questions on Birla's integrity and contended that it was akin to questioning the country's democratic processes.
Birla was not present in the House during the entire period of the debate.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
EC hands over probe into gherao of seven judicial officers in Bengal's Malda to NIA
Kolkata (PTI): The Election Commission of India on Thursday handed over the probe into the gherao of the seven judicial officers in West Bengal's Malda district to the NIA, following a Supreme Court directive.
Observing that West Bengal was the "most polarised state", the Supreme Court delivered a stinging indictment of the state administration after seven judicial officers engaged in SIR exercise were held hostage by protesters in Malda district and directed a CBI or NIA probe into the incident.
In an April 2 letter to the National Investigating Agency, the poll body referred to the apex court's order and directed it to probe the Wednesday incident.
Talking to PTI, a top official of the poll body said the NIA team would reach West Bengal on Friday.
Slamming the state administration for its "complete failure" and inaction over the "deplorable" gherao and attack on the officers during the Special Intensive Revision(SIR) of the voters list, the court also asked the EC to "requisition adequate Central Forces and deploy them at all places where judicial officers are adjudicating the objections".
West Bengal will have a two-phase poll -- on April 23 and 29.
The Supreme Court further said the incident was a "brazen attempt not only to browbeat the judicial officers" but also amounted to a challenge to the authority of this Supreme Court.
The top court gave the order after it took suo motu cognisance of a letter from the Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court detailing a harrowing night where the judicial officers, including three women and a five-year-old child, were held captive by a mob for over nine hours without food or water.
The incident occurred during the SIR exercise in the Kaliachowk area of Malda district, and as per the order, seven judicial officers were gheraoed by "anti-social elements" at a BDO office starting at 3:30 PM on Wednesday.
The officers were rescued by security forces around midnight on Wednesday after they were gheraoed over the alleged deletion of names from the electoral rolls, officials said.
