PC George, a rebel leader of the Kerala Congress(M), third biggest partner of the Congress-led ruling UDF, was disqualified as MlA on Friday by Speaker N Sakthan under the Anti-Defection law with retrospective effect from June 3 last. George’s disqualification came a day after he submitted his resignation from the Assembly to the Speaker.
The Speaker’s decision came at the end of the proceedings over a petition filed by KC(M)’s Thomas Unniyadan, Chief Whip of the Government, on July 21, 2015 seeking George’s disqualification. “Since a decision has been taken to disqualify him with effect from June 3, his resignation tendered on Thursday was rejected,” the Speaker said in Thiruvananthapuram.
According to Sakthan, George was disqualified as MlA as he had chosen to move away from the KC(M) and the ruling UDF. The disqualification was with retrospective effect from June 3 last as it was on that date that George had given an application to the Speaker saying he was no more with the KC(M) and the UDF and that he should be allowed to vote as he liked, he said.
Sakthan informed that George’s disqualification was till the end of the tenure of the current Assembly. He also said that there was no decision to make George repay the benefits he had received as MlA till date. George was representing the Poonjar constituency in Kottayam district in the Assembly.
Known earlier as the personal trouble-shooter of Chief Minister Oommen Chandy, George, who was vice-chairman of the KC(M) of which KM Mani who resigned as Finance Minister the other day was chairman, had become a foe of the party after he began criticising Mani over the bar bribery scam involving him.