Opposition files no-confidence motion against Himachal Assembly Speaker amid uproar

Shimla (Himachal Pradesh) [India], September 2 : The opposition parties in the Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly submitted a no-confidence motion against the Speaker, Kuldeep Singh Pathania, on Monday following a controversial statement made by him on Friday.
On the fifth day of the monsoon session of the Himachal Legislative Assembly, the opposition parties handed the notice to the Assembly Secretary, demanding Pathania's resignation. This move occurred before the House proceedings commenced.
On Friday, BJP MLA Inder Dutt Lakhanpal objected to a statement made by the Speaker and demanded an apology. This led to a significant uproar in the Assembly, with opposition members expressing strong dissent.
Earlier today, prior to the start of the House proceedings, the opposition submitted a notice under Rule 274, formally filing a no-confidence motion against the Speaker and calling for his resignation.
Leader of Opposition and BJP MLA Jairam Thakur stated that the Speaker's conduct towards the opposition in the House and his use of what Thakur described as "unconstitutional language" outside the House would not be tolerated.
As a result, the opposition parties in the Legislative Assembly convened a meeting and decided to file a no-confidence motion against the Speaker.
"Today, during the BJP legislative meeting, it was decided that if the Speaker of the Himachal Assembly does not address the concerns of the opposition, we will submit a resolution for his removal. According to the rules, whenever such a resolution is submitted, the Speaker must step down. However, the Speaker seems to consider himself above the law, as he did not allow the opposition MLA to speak. The state government is not interested in hearing the concerns of the opposition, and thus we (BJP) walked out of the assembly session," Thakur said.