Daijiworld Media Network - Kolkata

Kolkata, Oct 8: Twenty rebel Trinamool Congress MPs who have aligned themselves with the NCPI have sought an additional 15 days to respond to notices issued by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on a petition seeking their disqualification under the anti-defection law, MP Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar said on Thursday.

The deadline given to the MPs to submit their replies expires on October 8. Ghosh Dastidar, who is among the 20 MPs, said they were yet to collate all the documents required to prepare their response and had therefore requested more time from the Lok Sabha secretariat.

"Our deadline to send a reply is about to end today. We are writing to the Lok Sabha Speaker requesting 15 days more time," Ghosh Dastidar told PTI.

The Lok Sabha secretariat had asked the MPs to respond by October 8 to notices issued following a petition seeking action against them under the anti-defection provisions.

The MPs' legal team could not complete the response before the deadline, prompting them to seek an extension. The rebel MPs have maintained that their decision to leave the TMC and align with the NCPI does not attract disqualification under the anti-defection law.

The 20 MPs are also scheduled to hold an urgent meeting in Kolkata at 3 pm on Thursday to discuss the notices and decide their next course of action, Ghosh Dastidar said.

The petition seeking their disqualification has brought the MPs' political realignment under scrutiny, with the Speaker's decision expected to determine the next course of proceedings under the anti-defection provisions.