Cong to seek early hearing on pleas to disqualify three Rae Bareli lawmakers
The Congress proposes to press for expeditious hearing of petitions seeking disqualification of its three Rae Bareli lawmakers — MLAs Aditi Singh and Rakesh Singh and MLC Dinesh Singh.
“Yes, we will seek an early hearing on the three petitions seeking disqualification of two MLAs and an MLC,” said Congress Legislature Party leader Aradhna Mishra.
The Congress on Tuesday moved a petition before UP assembly speaker Hriday Narayan Dikshit seeking disqualification of Aditi Singh. Its petitions seeking disqualification of Rakesh Singh and Dinesh Singh are pending with the the assembly speaker and the state legislative council chairman Ramesh Yadav, respectively.
A show cause notice was served on Aditi Singh by the then CLP leader Ajay Kumar Lallu after she attended a special session of the state assembly on October 2, defying the party’s whip. The Congress boycotted the special session convened to mark the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi and have a 36-hour uninterrupted debate in the state legislature on the UN’s sustainable development goals.
Aditi Singh, who was not available for comment, had praised chief minister Yogi Adityanath in the house during the special session. The Yogi government thereafter decided to give her Z-plus security.
Much significance is being attached to the Congress’s move as Rae Bareli is the Lok Sabha constituency of Congress president Sonia Gandhi.
The Congress had won seven seats across UP in the 2017 assembly elections. As the party has moved petitions seeking disqualification of two MLAs, the party’s effective strength is likely come down to five in the UP assembly. The Congress has two members Deepak Singh and Dinesh Singh in the state legislative council.
A senior party leader said the Congress was contemplating a move to approach the Allahabad high court, hoping for directions to the state legislative council chairman for an early hearing on the petition seeking disqualification of Dinesh Singh.