Office of profit case: Delhi High Court to hear plea of 8 AAP MLAs today

A Delhi High Court judge will hear later in the day the plea of eight AAP MLAs against their disqualification for holding office of profit.

Justice Vibhu Bakhru said he will hear the pleas of the MLAs, challenging the Centre's notification which had disqualified 20 legislators, after lunch.

Observing the crowd in his courtroom before taking up the matter, the judge said he was unable to conduct hearing of other matters.

The court was jam-packed with the eight AAP MLAs and their supporters and some senior members of the party besides scribes and counsel for the legislators.

On January 19, the poll panel had made the recommendation for the disqualification of the 20 legislators, which was given assent by the President.

On January 20, the Ministry of Law and Justice issued a notification that the President held that the 20 MLAs stand disqualified under Section 15(1)(a) of the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (GNCTD) Act.

The EC had made the recommendation while deciding a plea by advocate Prashant Patel, who had sought disqualification of 21 AAP MLAs for holding the office of parliamentary secretaries, which he had said amounted to office of profit.

The proceedings against Jarnail Singh were dropped after he resigned as the Rajouri Garden MLA to contest the Punjab Assembly polls.