Pondy Speaker rejects nomination of 3 BJP members to Assembly

V Saminathan, president of the Puducherry unit of the BJP, party treasurer K G Shankar and party activist and educationist S Sellaganapthy were sworn-in as nominated members of the Assembly by Puducherry Lt Governor Kiran Bedi on July 4 after they were nominated to the House by the Centre. 

Secretary to the Assembly A Vincent Rayar, in a separate communication to the members, informed them of Speaker V Vaitilingam’s decision rejecting their nomination. “The Speaker is of the considered view that your nomination was made by the incompetent authority and without jurisdiction and in contravention of the provisions of the Constitution and the Government of Union Territories Act 1963and hence the nominations are void,” the communication said.

He also informed them that the speaker felt that just because the oath was administered to them by the Lt Gov-ernor did not mean that the speaker has to recognise them as members of the Assembly as their nominations were void. The secretary informed the members that the speaker has rejected their claims that they be provided all facilities as legislators. A copy of the communication was distributed to the media. 

Bedi administered the oath of office to the three members on the night of July 4 at her office Raj Nivas, triggering protests by the ruling Congress and its alliance partners on July 7, who observed a fast here on that day. They also organised a bandh the next day in protest against the ‘arbitrary manner’ in which the Centre nominated the members without consulting the territorial government. They contended that the speaker is the constitutional authority to induct the members in the Assembly.

The Union Home Ministry had announced the nomination of the three to the Assembly through an order in the first week of July. It was notified in the state gazette subsequently. But the speaker then took the stand that there was no communication to his office from “the competent authority” and hence declined to accept the nomination.