Aam Aadmi Party MLAs, including Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, donned caps that displayed the party’s name and symbol while attending proceedings of the Delhi Assembly on Monday. The Opposition BJP termed this a violation of House rules.
As Monday marked the sixth anniversary of the AAP’s foundation, the MLAs had decided to wear the party caps, Greater Kailash MLA and AAP spokesperson Saurabh Bharadwaj told the media.
When the special session called to discuss last week’s attack on Mr. Kejriwal and the alleged mass voter deletion began, the AAP MLAs were not wearing the caps.
Leader marshalled out
After the House reconvened following the tea break, AAP MLAs returned wearing caps that carried the party’s broom symbol.
Before the break, Speaker Ram Niwas Goel had ordered Leader of the Opposition Vijender Gupta to be marshalled out for disrupting Home Minister Satyendar Jain’s speech.
Speaker’s permission
Along with Mr. Gupta, BJP MLAs Jagdish Pradhan and O.P. Sharma walked out, leaving no Opposition members in the House after the break.
When asked whether he had given permission to the AAP MLAs to wear the caps with the party symbol, Mr. Goel said, “I did not give any permission. The Constitution is silent on caps. If someone brings in a banner or raises a slogan against anyone else, that is objectionable”.
Violated Rule 261
The Leader of the Opposition, however, said in a letter to Mr. Goel that the AAP MLAs had violated Rule 261 of the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in the Legislative Assembly of National Capital Territory of Delhi, which say that members shall not display any flags, emblems and exhibits in the House.
Mr. Gupta demanded action against the MLAs, terming the incident a “black day” in the history of the Delhi Assembly as the party symbol had been displayed on the caps.
Stating that there was no “procedural lapse” on the part of AAP MLAs, Mr. Bharadwaj said that if there were any objections, the “BJP MLAs are welcome to wear their caps on their party’s foundation day”.