UT News Service | IMPHAL, Aug 11: The strength of the 60-member Manipur Legislative Assembly has been reduced to 47 as the Speaker of the Assembly accepted the resignations of five of the six Congress MLAs on Tuesday.
In a heavy blow to the main opposition Congress party in Manipur, six sitting MLAs of the party had submitted their resignations to the Speaker Y Khemchand of the state Assembly reportedly on Monday. The six MLAs who tendered their resignations are Okram Henry Singh, Oinam Lukhoi Singh, Md Abdul Nasir, Ngamthang Haokip, Ginsuanhau and Paonam Brojen Singh.
The Speaker, however, accepted the resignation of the first five MLAs Tuesday while putting on hold the resignation of Paonam Brojen Singh.
An official source said the Speaker put on hold the resignation of Brojen as a disqualification case against him is pending with the Tribunal of the Speaker of the state Assembly.
The six Congress who defied the party whip and skipped the one-day monsoon session of the state Assembly had tendered their resignation reportedly on Monday to the Speaker while the session was in progress.
Even as the Congress issued whip to its MLAs, eight of them skipped the session when the trust motion moved by chief minister N Biren Singh was discussed and passed by voice both amid chaos in the House.
Later, the six Congress MLAs told reporters late Monday night that they were also going to quit the Congress party as they “have no more faith in the party with O Ibobi Singh as leader of the opposition and also as Congress Legislature Party leader.
After the Speaker accepted the resignations of the five MLAs, the 60-seat state Assembly has now only 47 members.
Seven seats are already lying vacant after the Speaker had disqualified four of the seven Congress MLAs who defected to BJP and after three MLAs of the BJP had resigned in June this year.
The Congress that won 28 seats in the 2017 elections to the state Assembly has now only 18 MLAs.
NNN
