Himachal Assembly Speaker acting like CM's puppet: Jairam Thakur

Shimla, Jun 25 (PTI) Leader of Opposition Jairam Thakur on Tuesday hit out at Himachal Pradesh Assembly Speaker Kuldeep Singh Pathania and said that he is acting like a "puppet" of the chief minister.

Addressing a press conference here, Thakur said that the Speaker has no authority to disqualify nine BJP MLAs who merely "raised slogans against the government".

Thakur said this while replying to a query on issuance of notice to nine BJP legislators in March this year.

During the budget session, some BJP members had allegedly disrespected the Chair and tore papers in the House, after which the Speaker had issued notices to them.

Accusing Pathania of violating rules, Thakur claimed that the Speaker has been promised certain post.

Thakur also said that the Congress government in Himachal is solely focused on retaining power, and Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu is doing nothing beyond that.

He said the chief minister had said that no one from his family would contest the elections, yet his (Sukhu's) wife received a ticket to contest the upcoming assembly bypoll.

"I have been CM myself, such a decision would not be possible without the CM's approval, especially in the Congress party," he said.

"The present Congress government in not going to survive. It does not have any threat from BJP legislators but it has a threat from its own MLAs," Thakur added.

He also lashed out at the Sukhu government over alleged deteriorating law and order situation in the state, and claimed that in the past 17 months the state has recorded more than 150 murders and over 300 rapes.

Thakur further alleged that the drug trade is flourishing under the protection of Congress leaders. PTI COR KVK KVK