Improper for Naidu to reject impeachment motion: Goa Congress leader

It was improper for Rajya Sabha Chairman M. Venkaiah Naidu to make advance publicity a ground to reject an impeachment motion against CJI Dipak Misra since many BJP leaders have done so in the past, Goa Congress President Shantaram Naik said on Monday.

"A number of leaders of the BJP, when they were in the opposition, let go no opportunity to give advance publicity to their notices," Naik said in a statement here.

Naik, who has served as Chairman of the Rajya Sabha Standing Committee of Law and Justice, claimed that Naidu, as a Minister in the NDA government, would raise matters in the Upper House "even without giving the required notice".

"I too have given advance publicity to notices given to the Rajya Sabha against Prime Minister Narendra Modi, then Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar, Shipping Minister Nitin Gadkari and others. The Chair never objected to such publicity," Naik said.

"As regards other grounds, the Rajya Sabha Chair's duty is only to confirm whether 50 (or more) members have signed the motion against the Chief Justice of India, and whether the charges are such that are required to be gone into," the Congress leader said.

Naidu should have instead admitted the motion and set up a three-member committee as required under Section 3 of the Judges Inquiry Act, 1968.

"It was improper for the Chairman to assume the role of the three-member committee, which he conveniently avoided to constitute," Naik said.

--IANS

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