Panaji, Jan 22 (IANS): Pumped up by the previous day's Supreme Court order, which urged lawmakers to consider creation of a Tribunal to adjudicate disqualification petitions in a time-bound manner, the Goa Congress on Wednesday urged Speaker Rajesh Patnekar to dispose, within a specific time-frame, its disqualification petition filed in August 2019 against 10 now-former MLAs who switched over to the BJP.

"The Supreme Court has urged for disposing of disqualification petitions in a time-bound manner. Similarly, in the spirit of the order, Speaker of the Goa assembly should dispose our petition in a timely manner," Chodankar told a press conference on Wednesday.

In its order on Tuesday, an apex court bench led by R.F. Nariman urged Parliament to rethink as to whether Speakers as quasi-judicial authorities could be entrusted with hearing disqualification petitions and whether Tribunals headed by retired judges could adjudicate such matters in a timely manner.

In August last year, Chodankar had filed a disqualification petition against 10 now former Congress MLAs, claiming that their split from the Congress and subsequent merger into the BJP was illegal. The Congress has repeatedly complained that the Speaker has been delaying conducting hearings in the matter.

In all, 13 Congress members of the Goa Legislative Assembly have quit the party and have joined the BJP since 2017.