Pollard fashions sensational win for Mumbai Indians
Mumbai, Apr 10: Stand-in captain Kieron Pollard's sensational 83-run knock put KL Rahul's maiden IPL hundred in the shade as Mumbai Indians pulled off a thrilling last-ball three-wicket win over Kings XI Punjab, here Wednesday.
Rahul and Chris Gayle, who struck a 36-ball 63 powered Kings XI Punjab to an imposing 197 for four after being asked to bat.
Pollard single handedly brought his side back in the game with his 31-ball knock punishing the Punjab bowlers with 10 sixes and three fours.
The burly West Indian was dismissed in the second ball of the last over with four needed for victory from final five balls.
Alzarri Joseph (15 not out), who added a crucial 54 runs in 23 balls with Pollard for the seventh wicket, and Rahul Chahar (1) managed to hold their nerves to take side past the finish line.
The victory was the third in a row for MI and took their tally to eight from six games while Kings XI suffered their third defeat in seven games.
Pollard's pyrotechnics stole the thunder from Kings XI openers K L Rahul who had carried his bat through with an unbeaten 100 in 64 balls with the help of six fours and as many sixes and his opening partner Chris Gayle who smashed 63 in 36 balls with seven sixes and three fours.
Pollard, standing in for Rohit Sharma, who missed out on the game due to leg spasm injury, promoted himself in the order.
After 10 overs, MI needed 133 in 60 balls, still fancying their chances with the big-hitting Pollard at the crease and another fine finisher Hardik Pandya to follow.
Shami got rid of the other Hardhik and Krunal Pandya in spac of four balls.
The equation whittled down to 63 from 30 balls and then 15 off the last six balls after Pollard smacked Curran for two sixes and a four in the penultimate over before he was caught off Rajput in the last over.
Earlier, Gayle, who smashed seven towering sixes and also hit three fours, laid the platform for the big total with his opening partner Rahul.
The duo's 116-run stand in 77 balls took MI by storm. Gayle's dismissal in the 13th over slowed down the innings but Rahul punished Hardik Pandya by hitting three sixes and a four in the 19th, which yielded them 25 runs.
Thirteen came off the final over to boost the total.
The flamboyant Gayle, who was circumspect initially, struck Australian pacer Jason Behrendorff for three huge sixes and one four to cream off 23 runs to begin the punishing act.
In the ninth over, Gayle struck two fours and another massive leg-side six as 17 came off Hardik Pandya's over to take Punjab to 86 without loss.
The left-hander also hit leggie Rahul Chahar, and the Pandya brothers Krunal and Hardik for a six each. He reached his 50 in 31 balls and the team's 100 was raised in 10.2 overs.
Gayle's mayhem ended when he was caught at deep mid-wicket off Behrendorff to nip his opening partnership with Rahul.
The left-handed Gayle's departure slowed down the run-rate with Hardik sending back David Miller and Karun Nair cheaply and Bumrah accounting for Sam Curran between the 15th and 18th overs.
Rahul went on the offensive in the last two and in the process completed his century.
MI were without captain Rohit Sharma, who was rested as a precautionary measure due to muscle spasm in his right leg.
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Resolution for his removal: Speaker Birla to be present in House but not chair proceedings
New Delhi (PTI): The Lok Sabha will witness a rare moment most likely on Monday next when Om Birla will not chair proceedings but will be seated amongst the members as the House takes up a notice seeking his removal from office.
As Parliament meets for the second phase of the Budget session on March 9, the Lok Sabha is likely to take up the resolution moved by the opposition against Birla's for allegedly acting in a "blatantly partisan" manner.
According to the rules and laid down procedure, Birla will get a right to defend himself when the resolution is discussed by the lower house. He will also have the right to vote against the resolution, Constitution expert P D T Achary explained.
The expert said while Birla will not chair the proceedings when the resolution comes up before the House, he will be seated in the prominent rows in the Treasury benches.
At least 118 opposition members had submitted a notice for moving the resolution to remove Birla from office for not allowing Leader of Opposition (LoP) Rahul Gandhi and other opposition leaders to speak in the House on the Motion of Thanks to the President's address, as well as for suspending eight MPs.
Congress member and chief whip K Suresh submitted the notice to the Lok Sabha secretariat on behalf of several opposition parties, including his party, Samajwadi Party and DMK.
TMC MPs, however, did not sign the notice.
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Achary, a former Lok Sabha secretary general, told PTI, that the "allocation of the seat, which the Speaker occupies under such circumstances is not mentioned in the Rules".
He said Birla will also not be able to vote on the resolution using the automated vote system, but will have to fill a slip to register his vote.
He presumes that a seat belonging to a Union minister, who is from the Rajya Sabha, could be given to him as only Lok Sabha members will be able to cast their votes for or against the resolution.
Deputy speaker of the Lok Sabha and deputy chairperson of the Rajya Sabha have their earmarked seats in their respective Houses when they are not presiding over.
Front seats in the opposition benches are allocated to them.
Article 96 of the Constitution bars a speaker or a deputy speaker from presiding over the House sitting while a resolution for his removal from office is under consideration.
The speaker has a constitutional right to defend himself in the House if the resolution is discussed in the Lok Sabha.
At least two Lok Sabha members have to sign the notice to move a resolution for the speaker's removal. Any number of members can sign the notice but a minimum of two is mandatory.
The speaker can be removed from office by a resolution passed by the House through a simple majority.
Article 94C of the Constitution has provisions for such a move.
"All the members of the House are counted to compute the majority, not the members present and voting, which is the normal practice. It means the effective membership of the House, except for the vacancies, is used to calculate the majority," Achary said.
The notice has to be submitted to the Lok Sabha secretary general, and not the deputy speaker or anyone else, he said.
The document is then examined at the preliminary stage to see whether it contains "very specific charges", he said.
"At the threshold itself, there is a process of admissibility. At that stage, it is seen whether it contains specific charges. Specific charges are required as only then the speaker will be able to respond," Achary explained.
The resolution must not contain defamatory language or content.
Article 96 gives the speaker the opportunity to defend himself or herself in the House.
The language of the proposed resolution is usually examined by the deputy speaker, but since the present Lok Sabha does not have a deputy speaker, it may be examined perhaps by the senior-most member of the panel of chairpersons.
The panel helps the speaker run the House in his or her absence.
"The speaker examining a resolution that seeks his removal looks absurd," Achary said, adding that the rule is silent on the subject.
Once the processing part is over, the resolution reaches the House. But it can go to the House after 14 days, Achary said.
The chair then places it in the House for consideration. It is actually the House which admits it, or as the rule says, "grants permission".
Achary further said, "The chair then asks members in favour of the resolution to stand up. If 50 members stand up in support of it and if the criteria is fulfilled, the Chair announces that the House has granted permission. Once the House grants permission, it has to be taken up for discussion and disposed of within 10 days."
Lok Sabha sources said it will be taken up for discussion on Monday itself.
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There are precedents of resolutions being moved. However, none has been adopted so far.
"The reason -- governments have a majority," Achary said.
The resolution alleges that Speaker Birla had acted in a "blatantly partisan" manner in conducting the business of the House and "abused" the constitutional office he occupies.
The Opposition also accused the speaker of making certain false allegations against members of the Congress.
Three Lok Sabha speakers -- G V Mavlankar (1954), Hukam Singh (1966) and Balram Jakhar (1987)-- had faced no-confidence motions in the past, which were negatived.
