In a flip flop, Bharatiya Janata Party member of Parliament Navjot Singh Sidhu, convicted by a court for causing the death of a person in a road rage incident, late on Friday night decided to give a fresh letter of resignation from the Lok Sabha after his first letter was rejected by Speaker Somnath Chatterjee saying it was not as per rules.
"I am writing a fresh letter in accordance with the rules," Sidhu told PTI after changing his mind in less than two hours after declaring that he would not send a fresh resignation letter to the Speaker.
Asked what made him change his decision so soon, Sidhu offered no comment but it is understood that BJP, which took a high moral ground on his resignation earlier in the day, wanted him to stick to that and send a fresh letter as per rules.
Earlier on Friday evening, Sidhu had ruled out writing a fresh resignation letter to Chatterjee who rejected his first letter of resignation.
"Why should I write a new resignation letter? I have done my duty and submitted my resignation letter with the Speaker's office, which was duly acknowledged," Sidhu had said.
With Sidhu listing reasons for quitting his Lok Sabha seat, Chatterjee has "not accepted" his resignation saying it was not according to rules.
"The resignation in its present form cannot be accepted. It is not in accordance with Rule 240 which deals with resignation of a seat from the House," the Speaker's office said.
As per rules, the resignation from the House must be a one-liner and has to be an unconditional affair and no reason should be cited.
