Panaji: With Maharashtra Legislative Assembly Speaker Rahul Narwekar disposing of 34 disqualification petitions, Congress leader Girish Chodankar on Friday stated that Goa Speaker Ramesh Tawadkar should resign if he is unable to hear the disqualification petitions.
Coming down heavily on Tawadkar, GPCC former President Girish Chodankar said that the Speaker is working on behest of the BJP and is trying to satisfy them for his personal political agenda.
“Ramesh Tawadkar must resign as speaker as his conduct has failed to justify the Constitutional office that he presides over. While the Maharashtra speaker has disposed of 34 disqualification petitions within the same time frame, Tawadkar has not only failed to hear the pending disqualification petitions but has not even initiated the adjudication process in most of the petitions.” he said.
Chodankar said that the BJP leader holding the Constitutional post of the Speaker has brazenly and very conveniently ignored the Hon’ble Supreme Court’s directions to dispose of disqualification matters with promptitude and within a time bound manner.
“Maharashtra Speaker disposed of 34 petitions in 18 months after intervention of Supreme Court, while Goa speaker is wasting time with just 4 petitions, which continues to be pending for the last 16 months. With all due respect to the high office of the Hon’ble Speaker, the present Goa Speaker’s deliberate dilatory tactics seemingly to avail political benefits reeks of political malafide and is unacceptable in a democratic nation like ours.” He said.
“Constrained by the inaction on part of the Speaker, I was forced to approach the Hon’ble High Court and Hon’ble Supreme court as Tawadkar has failed to perform his constitutional duties. It is evident that he is proceeding to adjudicate Disqualification Petitions at his whims and fancies merely to protect his political party. Tawadkar is guilty of murdering democracy by favouring his political party despite holding an inherently neutral, Constitutional Office.” Chodankar said.
