Daijiworld Media Network - Bengaluru

Bengaluru, Mar 23: Legislative assembly speaker U T Khader has stated that if the 18 suspended BJP MLAs acknowledge their mistake and submit a request, their six-month suspension period may be reduced.

Speaking at a press conference on Saturday, the speaker said, "They tore papers and threw them at me, showing disrespect to the chair. They even climbed onto the speaker's podium and obstructed proceedings. Due to their indiscipline and disrespect toward the speaker’s chair, the MLAs have been suspended from the assembly. This action has been taken as per Rule 348 of the Karnataka Legislative Assembly’s procedures and conduct guidelines. The suspension was not imposed out of anger or vendetta. If the 18 MLAs submit a request, I will consider the next course of action. There was no external pressure in this decision."

He further stated, "Elected representatives are chosen by the people, and they must behave accordingly. This is the second time BJP MLAs have behaved in this manner. They ignored the speaker’s orders and disrupted proceedings with their unruly and disrespectful behavior during the honey trap case discussion in the assembly, leading to their six-month suspension. This serves as a warning to prevent such incidents in the future."

"They should at least realize their mistake. Shouldn't they have even a slight sense of accountability for their actions? Even after the session resumed, they continued with the same behavior. If MLAs behave this way in the assembly, what will happen in district-level meetings?" he questioned.

"The MLAs have the right to take legal action, but they must understand that if such behavior continues, the suspension period could be extended to one year. When senior BJP MLA Basanagouda Patil Yatnal suddenly wanted to speak about the honey trap issue, I allowed him. The minister responded, and both the home minister and chief minister assured an investigation upon receiving a complaint. Despite this, they disrupted the session. How is that justified?" he asked, defending his decision.