Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla is in no rush to settle the brewing rift inside the TMC. His position is clear: any final call on the rebel MPs will come only after both factions have been formally heard. Acting on that approach, the Speaker's office has now emailed the group of TMC MPs led by Mamata Banerjee, inviting them for a meeting.
Mamata's camp first, next steps later
According to sources, no move on the rebel camp will be made until the meeting with the Mamata-led MPs takes place. The matter heated up after 20 MPs from the rebel group met the Speaker and handed over a letter requesting that their faction be merged into the NCPI.
Mamata faction asked for its view
To keep the process balanced, sources say the Speaker's office has also written to the Mamata Banerjee-led faction by email, seeking its stand on the entire episode. Parliamentary sources had earlier indicated that the Speaker could seek legal advice on the demand to recognise the separated MPs as an independent group after their merger into the relatively little-known party, the Nationalist Citizens Party of India (NCPI).
Decision before the monsoon session
Sources say a decision on the demand will be taken before Parliament's monsoon session begins. The monsoon session usually starts in the third week of July. Whether or not the breakaway group is granted recognition will hinge on the written opinion of the Union Law Ministry.
Why the Law Ministry matters
As per the information available, the ministry will offer its opinion only after consulting a senior legal officer. This legal opinion is seen as essential so that, if the Speaker's decision is challenged in court, it can withstand the test of judicial review.
Constitutional expert spells it out
Former Lok Sabha Secretary General and constitutional expert P.D.T. Achary pointed to Para-4 of the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution. He made it clear that the right to merge lies only with a political party, not with individual MPs or MLAs. In short, only one party can merge into another.
Speaking to TrendKia, Achary said, 'If the leadership of a political party decides to merge with another party, its MPs and MLAs have to agree to that merger. But MPs or MLAs cannot, on their own, merge into any other political party. This is the constitutional provision.'
In sum, the path for the rebel MPs to merge into the NCPI and win recognition as a separate group now rests on what the Law Ministry's opinion concludes and on the verdict the Speaker reaches after listening to both camps.
