SHILLONG: Assembly Speaker A.T Mondal will examine whether the conduct of Mawhati legislator Julius Dorphang, who is allegedly involved in the rape of a minor, will amount to his disqualification from the House.
Normally, only after a legislator is convicted, he loses his membership.
Another possibility is that if a member is absent from the House for 180 days and a complaint is lodged, the Speaker will have no other option but to disqualify the legislator. The action is only because of his prolonged absence from the House.
After Dorphang’s arrest, the DGP had informed the Speaker about the matter.
The Speaker said over phone from Hyderabad that as per rule 180 of the procedure and conduct in the Meghalaya Legislative Assembly, prior permission is needed only if the arrest takes place in the precincts of the House.
Rule 180 says “no arrest shall be made within the precincts of the House without obtaining the permission of the Speaker”.
According to rule 181, a legal process, civil or criminal shall not be served within the precincts of the House without obtaining the permission of the Speaker.
However, as per rule 177, there is a provision for the police or the magistrate to inform the Speaker only after the arrest and a form has to be filled up mentioning about the case that led to the legislator’s arrest.
This is not the first time that a legislator is in police net in Meghalaya.
Earlier, NCP legislator Adolf Hitler Marak was arrested in connection with his alleged nexus with ANVC.
Later, though not an MLA, former Minister and Congress leader K.C Boro was also arrested in connection with the alleged murder of his second wife.
