more-inSpeaker P. Dhanapal on Wednesday submitted before the Madras High Court that the decision to disqualify a legislator can be taken only by the Speaker of the House and that courts do not have jurisdiction over the issue. Senior counsel Kapil Sibal, representing Mr. Sakkarapani, submitted that the Speaker had failed to take action against Mr. Paneerselvam and others for voting against the motion of confidence. The Speaker had so for not justified his inaction against the MLAs. But he swiftly acted against the 18 MLAs who made a representation to the Governor withdrawing their support to the Chief Minister. The MLAs met the Governor on August 22, and the Speaker initiated action against them on August 24, Mr. Sibal added.

Source: The Hindu January 17, 2018 19:42 UTC