Cong may take action against 12 party MPs absent during voting

Congress may take action against a dozen party MPs for their absence during voting in Lok Sabha on opposition amendments to President's Address including on the NCTC which saw friends and foes of the party making common cause.

A senior minister said that only three members had sought permission to remain absent. The party will take a view but it was premature to talk about any disciplinary action against those not present at this stage, he said.

"We are collecting details of the exact number of members who were actually not present," he said.

The party leadership could take serious cognizance of the absence of MPs in view of the fact that a three-line whip asking members to be present was issued for the day.

The minister, who declined to be identified, said that the action of the Trinamool Congress, when its members marched out of the House before voting, had caught the government unawares.

Leader of the Opposition Sushma Swaraj had said in the Lok Sabha that the numbers on the vote had exposed government's claim of majority.