Congress lawmaker Santosh Singh Saluja removed his coat in the middle of his speech,but had to put it on again on the instruction of the Speaker as "no one removes clothes" in the Assembly. Saluja,a three-time MLA from Kantabanji in Balangir district,was directed by speaker Pradip Kumar Amat to put on the coat which he had removed while participating in a discussion on an adjournment motion in the Orissa Assembly. The MLA's act was pointed out by treasury bench members who said removing clothes in the House was not acceptable. "No one can remove clothes in the house. Members have some dignity in the house and they must maintain it," said BJD member Pradeep Maharathy and asked the speaker to instruct Saluja to put on his coat again. Saluja followed the instruction but had to apologise in the house yesterday for hurling a penstand at the speaker which missed the target. The instruction,however,prompted 73-year-old Congress member Dambarudhar Ullka to made a 'complaint' before the speaker. Ullaka alleged in a lighter vein that the speaker was not giving him a chance to speak as he is the lone "dhoti-clad" member in the Opposition bench. "You gave chance to Saluja who is dressed in coat and tie. But,ignored me as I am the only 'dhoti'-clad member",Ullaka said and the members burst into laughter. Ullaka was immediately allowed to speak. Other prominent 'dhoti-clad' members in the Assembly were finance minister Prafull Chandra Ghadai,agriculture minister Damodar Rout and government chief whip R N Pani.
