BANGALORE: The strength of the House Committee announced by Assembly Speaker KG Bopaiah to inquire into the alleged watching of obscene film by three MLAs in the House, was raised to seven. Talking to newsmen here on Friday, Bopaiah said that the committee headed by the BJP will have four of its members, including the chairman, while the Congress and JD(S) would suggest two and one members respectively. The committee would look into the issue and submit a detailed report to the House before March 12.
The Speaker said his secretariat had issued show-cause notices to concerned members seeking their clarification on the issue.
“Once the members reply to the notice, the same would be placed before the House Committee, which would be formed by February 14,” said Bopaiah.
Strongly defending his decision about the ruling party member to be the Chairman of the committee, the Speaker said that the House leader of the Assembly would decide on the head of the committee.
He denied that the opposition parties were not consulted before the announcement of the formation of the House committee. “The committee was formed after holding over four hours of discussion with all floor leaders of the political parties including the Congress and the JD(S),” he said.
Bopaiah added that the porngate incident eroded the dignity of the state Legislature. "The committee was formed to unearth the truth behind the shameful incident and also decide on the nature of the punitive actions to be recommended,” he said.
He maintained that the possible refusal by the Congress and the JD(S) to join the House committee is difficult to comment upon. Bopaiah said that the body was formed on the lines of a House Committee, which was formed by former Lok Sabha speaker Somnath Chatterjee on December 12, 2005, to look into the allegations involving the cash-for-questions scam.