Singhvi to appear for MP Speaker in SC

New Delhi, March 16 (IANS) Madhya Pradesh Assembly Speaker N.P. Prajapati has engaged senior lawyer Abhishek Manu Singhvi to present his case in the Supreme Court on Tuesday when the petition, filed by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday, on Madhya Pradesh floor test will come for hearing.

The BJP moved the Supreme Court seeking an order to the Speaker to hold the floor test within 12 hours, as per the direction of Governor Lalji Tandon.

Earlier, the Speaker decided to adjourn the House till March 26. The MP political crisis deepened on Monday as the rebel Congress MLAs didn’t reach Bhopal to attend the opening day of the Assembly session.

The BJP said that despite clear-cut direction by the Governor to Chief Minister Kamal Nath to seek vote of confidence and prove his majority on the floor of the House on Monday after his (Governor’s) address, the item for seeking the trust vote was not included in the business to be transacted in the Assembly.

“The direction of the Governor is, thus, intentionally and wilfully defied. The Chief Minister and his party leaders have publicly declined to conduct the floor test,” it said.

The plea, filed by former Chief Minister Shivaraj Singh Chouhan, said on account of lack of confidence and resignation of 22 Congress MLAs — six have been accepted by the Speaker — the Nath-led government had been reduced to minority.

–IANS

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