Team Herald
PANJIM: Goa Legislative Assembly Speaker Ramesh Tawadkar on Monday granted six weeks’ time to eight defected MLAs to file their reply on the petition seeking their disqualification.
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On November 11, Congress leader Dominic Noronha had filed the disqualification petition against eight Congress MLAs, who had joined the BJP in September, last year.
On Monday, Tawadkar heard the petitioner and respondents in this matter and granted six weeks time to the eight MLAs to file their replies. The matter is posted for next hearing on April 5.
Speaking to mediapersons, post hearing, the Speaker said that the respondents sought six weeks time to file their reply to the disqualification plea and the same has been granted.
Tawadkar said that in yet another disqualification petition filed against two MLAs Digambar Kamat and Michael Lobo, in July last year, the matter is adjourned till March 6.
“Here too, the petitioner has sought time to reply to the reply submitted by the respondents,” he said.
“Voters vote for a particular party and then they (MLAs) change sides. In view of this I had filed this petition. I hope justice will prevail,” petitioner Dominic Noronha told mediapersons after the hearing.
Along with Noronha, former Congress president Girish Chodankar had also filed a disqualification petition, which is yet to be heard.
The disqualification plea against Kamat and Lobo was filed by Goa Pradesh Congress Committee President Amit Patkar in July last year for conspiring to split the Congress legislative wing and for voluntarily giving up membership of the party.
