A DAP lawmaker was given the marching orders for refusing to sit after his motion to refer Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak to the Rights and Privileges Committee was rejected.

Steven Sim (DAP-Bukit Mertajam) had told speaker Pandikar Amin Mulia that his motion was on the grounds that Najib had misled the Dewan Rakyat during his Budget 2017 speech.

However, Pandikar replied there was no prima facie case.

The Bukit Mertajam MP argued otherwise but was told that a speaker's decision could only be reviewed through a motion under Standing Order 43.

A mild exchange ensued between the two, which culminated in Pandikar ordering Sim to be escorted out after he did not heed instructions to sit.

Pandikar then told the House that he was merely performing his duties which was to interpret the Standing Orders.

"What benefit does Bukit Mertajam get (from defying the Standing Orders) other than publicity.

"The public won't see what happened here, what they'll see is that the speaker is being zalim (cruel) for kicking out an opposition MP," he said, adding that he would give BN MPs the same treatment, but they always followed his instructions.

Former speakers not so 'zalim'

Following this, Lim Kit Siang (DAP-Gelang Patah) asked the speaker if Standing Order 43 would be reviewed, as motions under that order were unlikely to be debated.

When Pandikar asked Lim why he had not posed the same question to former speakers, the latter replied "because former speakers were not so zalim".

An irate Pandikar then ordered Lim to withdraw his words.

Lim complied, but said the speaker should not ask him questions he was "unable to answer".

Later at a press conference in the Parliament reception room, Pandikar expressed disappointment over the incident.

He also said Sim's press conference, which had a written statement, showed that he had planned to get kicked out.

Pandikar said under his predecessors, such press conferences would not have been allowed, and would have resulted in suspensions.

"But no one has had action taken against them (for holding press conferences) under me.

"This shows that as speaker, myself and my deputies have become more liberal," he said.