Approach LS speaker before moving no-confidence against him: TMC's Abhishek Banerjee
New Delhi (PTI): Trinamool Congress leader Abhishek Banerjee on Tuesday said his party has "no problem" in signing a notice for a no-confidence motion against Om Birla, but stressed that the opposition should first approach the Lok Sabha speaker with their grievances, such as the suspension of eight MPs.
Interacting with reporters in the Parliament House complex on Tuesday, the MP from West Bengal's Diamond Harbour said Birla should be given a chance before the opposition moves a motion for his removal from the post.
Opposition parties submitted a notice on Tuesday for moving a resolution to remove Birla from the office of Lok Sabha speaker, alleging that he had acted in a "blatantly partisan" manner in conducting the business of the House and abused the constitutional office by making "blatantly false" allegations against Congress MPs.
Congress’ deputy leader in the Lok Sabha, Gaurav Gogoi, chief whip K Suresh and whip Mohamed Jawed submitted the notice to Lok Sabha Secretary General Utpal Kumar Singh on behalf of several opposition parties, including the Samajwadi Party and the DMK.
The TMC MPs, however, did not sign the notice and were not a party to it.
Banerjee said, "The All India Trinamool Congress has no problem signing the no-confidence motion against the speaker. All 28 MPs will sign it."
"However, before moving the no-confidence motion, we want all the INDIA bloc partners to sign a letter addressed to the speaker, highlighting the four points on which the argument is based," he said.
"For instance, eight (opposition) MPs have been suspended. An appeal can be made to reconsider or revoke the suspension. The speaker can be given two to three days' time to respond," he added.
If the speaker does not act or fails to provide satisfactory responses to the four issues, a no-confidence motion can be introduced after three days, he said.
The TMC leader said his party wants the Lok Sabha to function. "We want the House to function properly, but it appears the Union government does not. The House has been adjourned twice, and the speaker has not come to the House," he said.
"From 2 pm yesterday until 11 am today, the House remained adjourned. If you [the speaker] truly intend to ensure the House functions properly, why would you adjourn it for such a long period? You share the responsibility, along with the Union government, to ensure the smooth functioning of the House," he added.
Asked if there were any plans to bring an impeachment motion against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, he said, "We did not plan to bring an impeachment motion against Gyanesh Kumar at the very beginning. We could have done so three months ago, as the INC had suggested at the time."
Banerjee added that his party has explored all avenues against the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR).
"We explored all avenues. We held meetings, staged protests, the chief minister wrote six letters, and our delegation met the CEO and the CEC. Over the past three months, we have sent 100–150 letters, but received no response," he said.
"Impeachment is the last resort. Similarly, the speaker should be given a letter today and allowed three days to respond. If the speaker takes no action, then on Friday you [the INC] can move the no-confidence motion, and all AITC MPs will sign the resolution," he added.
About 120 MPs of parties such as the Congress, DMK, Samajwadi Party, Shiv Sena (UBT) and NCP (SP) had already signed a notice for moving the resolution against Birla, sources said.
While there have been attempts in the past to remove the speaker, none have been successful.
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5 of family found dead in Mathura, mass suicide suspected
Mathura (UP) (PTI): A couple and their three minor children were found dead inside their home in Mathura's Khapparpur village on Tuesday, police said, suspecting that it is a case of mass suicide.
Police have recovered a suicide note from the spot. A video made by the patriarch of the family was also found on his mobile phone besides a message written on a wall, they said.
Mathura Senior Superintendent of Police Shlok Kumar said the deceased have been identified as Manish Kumar (35), a farmer, his wife aged around 32 and their two daughters -- Honey (8) and Priyanshi (5) -- and son Prateek (3).
"They were found dead inside a room of their house," he said.
The police said they received information about the incident from Manish Kumar's brother.
When the children didn't come out in the morning to play, Manish's brother went inside the house after jumping the wall and broke open the door, and found his family members dead. He was accompanied by some villagers.
In the alleged suicide note written by Manish Kumar, the 35-year-old said that he and his wife are willing ending their lives and nobody is responsible for their deaths, according to the police.
He was troubled by some problems and was not able to share them with others, Circle Officer (Mahavan) Shweta Verma said, citing the suicide note.
Calling it an unfortunate incident, Mathura District Magistrate Chandra Prakash Singh said Manish recorded a video on his mobile before the incident.
In the video, Manish said that he is willingly taking the extreme step. He also mentioned that he recently sold a plot to someone for Rs 12 lakh and had also received money from the buyer.
The DM said that the chief minister has also expressed grief over the incident and directed officials to provide full support to the family and probe the matter from all angles.
SSP Kumar said the bodies have been sent for post-mortem examination and an investigation is underway.
Agra Divisional Commissioner Nagendra Pratap also visited the mortuary in the afternoon.
