📷 Image: Wikimedia Commons / Subhashish Panigrahi
Politics
BJD Files Petition in Odisha High Court Challenging Speaker’s Cross‑Voting Ruling
✍️ Deccan Chronicle
🗓 12 Sep 2026, 01:18 PM
👁 28
The Biju Janata Dal has approached the Odisha High Court seeking to overturn the Speaker’s decision that permitted cross‑voting in a recent assembly dispute.
The Biju Janata Dal (BJD) has moved the Odisha High Court to contest a decision taken by the state Assembly Speaker that allowed members to cast votes across party lines in a recent legislative vote. The Speaker’s ruling, issued after a heated debate in the Odisha Legislative Assembly, has sparked controversy among opposition parties and raised questions about procedural propriety.
In its petition, the BJD argues that the Speaker exceeded constitutional authority by permitting cross‑voting, thereby undermining the party discipline essential to a stable government. The party seeks a judicial order to nullify the Speaker’s decision and to direct the Assembly to re‑conduct the vote in accordance with established rules.
Legal experts note that the case could set a precedent for how cross‑voting issues are handled in state legislatures across India. The outcome may also influence the balance of power within the Odisha Assembly, where the BJD holds a majority but faces scrutiny over its internal governance practices.
In its petition, the BJD argues that the Speaker exceeded constitutional authority by permitting cross‑voting, thereby undermining the party discipline essential to a stable government. The party seeks a judicial order to nullify the Speaker’s decision and to direct the Assembly to re‑conduct the vote in accordance with established rules.
Legal experts note that the case could set a precedent for how cross‑voting issues are handled in state legislatures across India. The outcome may also influence the balance of power within the Odisha Assembly, where the BJD holds a majority but faces scrutiny over its internal governance practices.