BJP MLAs were suspended for six months from the Karnataka Legislative Assembly on Friday for “disrespecting” Speaker U T Khader. The suspension resolution, moved by State Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister H K Patil, was adopted by the Assembly. The incident occurred on the last day of the Assembly’s Budget Session, when the Opposition BJP MLAs staged a massive protest. The legislators climbed onto the podium where Speaker Khader’s chair is situated and threw papers at him. The protest was sparked by Opposition anger over the allocation of a four per cent reservation to Muslims in public contracts. Earlier, the BJP members had protested from the well of the House, accusing the Government of attempting to “honey trap” a Minister and demanding a judicial probe into the matter, even as the Chief Minister addressed the budget discussion. 

 

Those who were suspended are the BJP chief whip Doddanna Gouda Patil, C N Ashwath Narayan, S R Vishwanath, B A Basavaraju, M R Patil, Channabasappa, B Suresh Gowda, Umanath Kotyan, Sharanu Salagar, Dr Shailendra Beldale, C K Ramamurthy, Yashpal Suvarna, B P Harish, Bharath Shetty, Dheeraj Muniraju, Chandru Lamani, Muniratna and Basavaraj Mattimood. While reading out the suspension order, Khader said on Friday, “The incident has hurt us a lot and it’s painful. This seat is not just a chair. This is the symbol of democracy, truth and justice. To speak from this chair is a matter of pride. None of us are above the chair. Let this incident be a lesson for us.” “This chair cannot tolerate interrupting the proceedings of the House, ignoring the dignity of the Chair and behaving in a way that damages the parliamentary traditions,” he addded. As the suspended legislators remained in the Assembly, they were forcefully evicted by marshals. Leader of Opposition, R Ashoka condemned the resolution, saying that the Government should be ashamed after Minister K N Rajanna raised the issue of “honey trap” and it failed to protect him. A similar display of unruly behavior was witnessed in the Legislative Council, where BJP MLCs tore the bill and threw it into the well of the House, directly in front of Council Chairperson Basavaraj Horatti.