‘Revoke suspension, opposition ready to let house function’: Mallikarjun Kharge on suspension of 12 MPs

Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge also called the move to suspend the MPs as "against the Constitution" and said that the opposition was being forced to disrupt the House so that no issues were discussed.

Reiterating his demand for revoking the suspension of 12 opposition lawmakers from the Rajya Sabha, the leader of opposition in the Upper House, Mallikarjun Kharge, on Wednesday said that the opposition was ready to let the House function.

Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge.(ANI)

Kharge also called the move to suspend the MPs as "against the Constitution" and said that the opposition was being forced to disrupt the House so that no issues were discussed.

“Today we raised the issue once again that this is not right and the suspension should be revoked. I appeal once again that we are ready to let the House function. All opposition has boycotted the House today and we will sit with suspended MPs for the entire day,” news agency ANI quoted Kharge as saying. He also said that the opposition was yet to decide about the proceedings of the House on Thursday.

The suspension was against the Constitution, Kharge said, and that the opposition did not want the house to be disrupted. “Suspension is against Article 85 of the Constitution,” he said.

“We do not want the House to function like this, but they are forcing us so that the House does not function and no issues are raised, be it of farmers, Pegasus, inflation, fuel prices, Nagaland,” he further said.

“We have been continuously putting forth our views in the House regarding the revocation of suspension of our MPs and we have requested the Chairman several times that we are not at fault, still we have been punished. I have also said that the suspension is against rules,” he added.

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Earlier on Tuesday, Kharge made similar comments when he said that the suspension of the MPs “for an act of the previous session, without following the laid down procedure, was completely undemocratic, unprecedented and done in a vindictive manner in gross violations of Rules of Procedure and Constitutional provisions,” in a statement.

The opposition, except the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and the YSR Congress Party (YSRCP), boycotted the Rajya Sabha over the suspension, according to a report by ANI. The Congress, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), Trinamool Congress, Left parties, Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) did not join the Question Hour in the Upper House.