Rebel RJD MLC disqualified on party’s plea

Rambali Singh was elected as a member of the legislative council (MLC) in June 2020 as an RJD nominee from the assembly quota and his term was to expire in 2026.

Bihar legislative council chairman Devesh Chandra Thakur on Tuesday ordered the disqualification of RJD’s Rambali Singh as a member on a petition filed by the party’s deputy chief whip Sunil Kumar Singh.

Rambali Singh (ANI)

Rambali Singh was elected as a member of the legislative council (MLC) in June 2020 as an RJD nominee from the assembly quota and his term was to expire in 2026.

However, the party had taken serious exception to his unrelenting campaign against the state government’s decision to include Teli, Tamoli, Chaurasia and Dangi castes among the extremely backward classes (EBCs) in 2015.

RJD had sought his disqualification on the ground that the he indulged in anti-party activities and refused to mend his ways despite repeated reminders.

Rambali Singh described the order to disqualify him as member of the council as “murder of democracy” and said he will challenge it in the court of law. “I have been fighting for the rights of 110 extremely backward castes (EBCs) and it will continue. The way RJD acted in my case exposed the party’s mindset against the EBCs. Why did not the party act against Sunil Kumar Singh and MLA Sudhakar Singh, who had also criticised the party leadership? I was penalised as I belonged to the EBC and the other two hailed from the upper castes,” he said, adding that his programme to lay siege to the state legislature on February 28 in protest against inclusion of Teli, Tamoli, Chaurasia and Dangi castes in the EBC category remains unchanged.

Rambali Singh approached the Patna high court once he came to know about the disqualification proceedings, but did not get any relief from the court, which directed him to approach the legislative council chairman.

Rambali Singh had also unsuccessfully moved the HC and the Supreme Court against the government’s 2015 order and undertaken taken padyatra in support of the cause on October 2 last year from Karpoori Gram village of Samastipur, the native place of former Bihar chief minister Karpoori Thakur, who was recently conferred Bharat Ratna, the country’s highest civilian honour, for his role in championing the cause of backwards, among other achievements.