BJP leader KG Bopaiah will continue as the pro-tem speaker of the new Karnataka assembly after the Congress and the Janata Dal (Secular) dropped their demand in the Supreme Court to replace him ahead of a court-ordered floor test on Saturday.
“Law can’t direct the governor to appoint a particular person as pro-tem speaker. Unless convention becomes legal norm, it can’t be enforced by Court,” said the Supreme Court.
The court was hearing a petition filed by the Congress and JD(S) challenging Bopaiah’s appointment on the ground that he was not the senior-most legislator.
A bench comprising justices AK Sikri, SA Bobde and Ashok Bhushan told senior lawyer Kapil Sibal, who is also a Congress leader, that it will have to listen to Bopaiah and the floor test will have to be rescheduled. Sibal and other lawyers representing the Congress and JD (S) then dropped their demand for a new pro-tem speaker.
The Congress moved the Supreme Court on Friday night after Karnataka governor Vajubhai Vala appointed Bopaiah as the pro-tem speaker. Vala’s decision came after the Supreme Court curtailed the 15-day period given to BJP chief minister BS Yeddyurappa to prove his majority and told him to face a floor test on Saturday.
The court ordered that the proceedings of the Karnataka assembly will be shared with local TV channels for transparency.
