Abhay Singh Chautala of the Indian National Lok Dal announced his resignation from the post of Leader of the Opposition in the Haryana Assembly on Saturday.
The INLD had asked the Speaker to disqualify five MLAs from its party under the ‘Anti-Defection Law’ of the 10th Schedule of the Constitution.
The five MLAs, whose name have been forwarded for disqualification to the Speaker, include Ranbir Singh Gangwa who switched over to the BJP two days ago. The others are Naina Singh Chautala, Anoop Dhanak, Pirthi Singh Nambardar and Rajdeep Phogat, all of whom had joined the Jannayak Janta Party a few months ago.
“Legislators Naina Singh Chautala, Anoop Dhanak, Rajdeep Phogat and Pirthi Singh Nambardar had been indulging in anti-party activities. They have been supporting the newly floated Jannayak Janta Party and even canvassed electoral support for it during the recently concluded Jind by-election. Ranbir Gangwa too has defected and joined the BJP without resigning from the membership of the Haryana Assembly,” Mr. Chautala told journalists.
“All five of them have thus incurred disqualification under the 10th Schedule. Consequent to the disqualification of all these MLAs of INLD, I would not like to continue as the Leader of the Opposition,” he said.
Fall in numbers
The strength of INLD in Haryana House has come down to 17 after the death of Jind MLA Harichand Middha and Pehowa legislator Jaswinder Singh Sandhu and defection of five MLAs.
In the 90-member House, the current strength of the BJP is 48, INLD 17, Congress 17, BSP one and Akali Dal one, besides five Independents.
Mr. Chautala said his party would also approach the Lok Sabha Speaker for disqualification of Dushyant Chautala, who won the Hisar parliamentary seat on INLD symbol.
The INLD, founded by former Deputy Prime Minister Devi Lal, split in 2018 after a bitter power struggle between his two grandsons – Ajay Chautala, who is serving a 10-year jail sentence in a teacher recruitment scam, and Abhay Chautala, who has been running the party since 2013.
Dushyant Chautala, son of Ajay Chautala, floated new political outfit – the JJP — last year.