Panaji: Goa Legislative Assembly Speaker Ramesh Tawadkar on Tuesday demanded apology from Goa Forward Party MLA Vijai Sardesai, who had equated him to be “employee of the chief minister.”
Tawadkar told reporters at Porvorim that he would not meet the Opposition members till Sardesai tenders apology for his statement. He said that the statement was insulting to the post of the Speaker.
Sardesai on Monday had demanded that the Speaker should include Private Members Day in the upcoming Session of the Assembly which will be held from January 16-19. Briefing mediapersons, Sardesai had said that the Speaker was acting like an employee of the chief minister.
Tawadkar on Tuesday said that he has already informed Leader of Opposition Yuri Alemao that he will not meet them till Sardesai tenders apology.
“The length of the Assembly Session is decided by the government while business in the session is decided by Business Advisory Committee. I have no role to play in it,” Tawadkar said accusing the opposition members of unnecessarily dragging the post of the Speaker in the controversy.
He said that the opposition members before going to the media and making any statement against him, should have met him. “I would have tried to understand their demand and place is before the state government,” the Speaker stated.
Meanwhile, the opposition members are scheduled to meet Governor P S Sreedharan Pillai placing their demands after Speaker’s refusal to meet them.
A senior opposition MLA said that they would be meeting the Governor at 3.30 pm at Raj Bhavan.
