Bhubaneswar, March 15 The opposition BJD on Sunday evening told its two suspended MLAs to cast their votes in the Rajya Sabha elections in line with the party's direction, or they may face disqualification from the House.
Patkura MLA Aravind Mohapatra and Champua MLA Sanatan Mahakud were suspended by the BJD on January 15 on charges of anti-party activities.
BJD chief whip Pramila Mallik, in a letter to them, said: "You were elected to the Odisha Assembly as a candidate of the BJD. You have been suspended from the party due to anti-party activities, but such suspension does not absolve you from your constitutional obligations as a member elected on the party symbol."
Mallik mentioned in the letter that the BJD has issued a whip directing its MLAs to vote in favour of the party's authorized candidate in the Rajya Sabha polls.
"Therefore, you are required to strictly comply with the party whip and cast your vote accordingly," she said.
"Any act of voting contrary to the party whip or abstaining from voting without prior permission of the party may attract the provisions of the 10th Schedule of the Constitution, including disqualification on the grounds that the legislator has voluntarily given up the membership of the political party," Mallik said in the letter.
She said that the party expects that you (suspended MLAs) will honour the mandate on which you were elected and comply with the party whip.
"Compliance with the party direction will also be taken into consideration by the party leadership while reviewing the matter relating to your suspension," she added.