Suspension of 10 Akali Dal MLAs Revoked by Punjab Assembly Speaker

The ongoing Budget session of the Punjab Assembly saw high drama after Speaker Rana KP Singh suspended all Akali Dal MLAs. Image used for representation. 

(Photo: The Quint)

Punjab Assembly Speaker Rana KP Singh on Monday, 8 March, revoked the suspension of 10 MLAs of the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), news agency PTI reported.

According to the report, the Speaker allowed the participation of the MLAs in the discussion on the Budget that was presented by state Finance Minister Manpreet Singh Badal on Monday.

On 5 March, the Speaker had suspended all MLAs of SAD for the remaining sessions of the Assembly, after a ruckus ensued while Chief Minister Amarinder Singh was replying on the Governor's address.

Assembly Elections Next Year

The ongoing Budget session of the Assembly saw high drama after the Speaker suspended all the Akali Dal MLAs and ordered them to stay out of the House for the remaining session. After the MLAs refused to leave the Well of the House, security personnel had to physically escort them out.

Elections in Punjab are due in early 2022, with the contesting political forces in the state including the ruling Congress, SAD, the Aam Aadmi Party and the Bharatiya Janata Party.

The protests against the three contentious agriculture laws, that has been led by farmers from Punjab, is expected to feature as the primary issue in the run-up to the elections. The passage of the laws in the Parliament in September had led to SAD breaking its ties with BJP and exiting the NDA government.