Puducherry government official appears before Privilege panel

A senior Puducherry government official today appeared before the Privilege Committee of the union territory assembly in response to its summons to him over his recent communication on payment of salaries and allowances to three nominatedMLAs.
Department of Confidential and Cabinet Under Secretary M Kannan appeared before the six-member panel which adjourned the hearing to January 9 after he sought a week's time to submit written replies to the privilege notice issued to him.
Chairman of the committee and Deputy Speaker V P Sivakolundhu, who chaired the proceedings, said the next course of action depended on the official's reply.
The privilege notice was served on the official on December 29 on a petitionfrom the government whip R K R Anandaraman seeking action against him for alleged breach of privilege by sending a letter to the Assembly Secretary for disbursal of salaries, allowances and other entitlements to the three nominated MLAs.

The nomination of the three MLAs belonging to BJP, by the Centre, had triggered a controversy after the Congress-led government said it was in violation of constitutional provisions and democratic norms.
Assembly Speaker V Vaithilingam had rejected the MLAs' nomination saying it was made by "incompetent authority and without jurisdiction and in contravention of the provisions of the Constitution and the Government of Union Territories Act 1963 and hence the nominations are void."

Lt Governor Kiran Bedi had on July 4 inducted the three members -- V Saminathan, BJP's Puducherry unit president, K G Shankar (its treasurer) and S Selvaganapathy (an educationist) -- as nominated members following an order by the Union Home Ministry.

This was however not accepted by the Speaker who took the stand that there was no official communication to his office from the "competent authority".
The Speaker's action has been challenged in the Madras High Court by the three MLAs.