HC to hear disqualified MLAs' petition today

The Karnataka High Court on Monday adjourned the hearing of the 16 disqualified legislators to Tuesday as arguments from the defence counsel and prosecution remained inconclusive after their case was taken up on an urgent basis by a division bench comprising of chief justice J S Khehar and Justice Manjula Chellur.

The 16 dissident legislators, including 11 of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and five independents, had filed a joint writ petition in the high court against their disqualification by state legislative assembly speaker K G Bopaiah ahead of the trust vote on the floor of the house.

Challenging the disqualification, defence counsel P P Rao told the court that first of all, the rebels were not given the mandatory seven days to reply to the speaker’s show-cause notice as per the rules governing the state legislative rules.

“The speaker served the notice on the rebels on October 8 and asked them to reply by 5 pm on October 10, giving only two days to reply, instead of the seven days, in violation of the rules,” Rao said.

Contending that the disqualification was unconstitutional and pre-emptive in nature, Rao said withdrawal of support by the rebels was outside the speaker’s purview and they did not violate any legislative rule before the trust-vote.

“Under the 10th Schedule of the Constitution pertaining to the anti-defection law, the lawmakers can be disqualified only if they defied the ruling party’s whip and voted against the confidence motion on the floor of the house,” Rao asserted.

Government’s counsel Soli Sorabjee, however, defended the speaker’s action by saying that the disqualification of the rebels, including the independents, was in conformity with the Anti-Defection Act, 1985.

“The seven-day notice was not applicable in this case, as governor H R Bhardwaj had already directed chief minister B S Yeddyurappa to prove majority by 5 pm on October 12. As the governor convened the house on Monday to take up the trust-vote on the request of the chief minister, the speaker had asked the dissidents to reply by Sunday,” Sorabjee said.

The prosecution also argued that the dissident legislators, especially the five independents stood disqualified as they were not only cabinet ministers in the government, but had also identified with the ruling party during the last 29 months.

As per the provisions of the Anti-Defection Act, independents identifying with the ruling party and being part of the government as minister for over six months become liable to be disqualified as much as the ruling party’s legislators, Sorabjee argued.

Adjourning the case for further hearings to Tuesday, chief justice Khehar declined to pass any interim order in favour or against the disqualification of the legislators.