Delhi HC rejects AAP MLAs' pleas against Speaker's move to initiate disqualification proceedings

The Delhi High Court on Wednesday refused to entertain petitions of rebel AAP MLAs Anil Bajpai and Colonel Devender Sehrawat challenging Assembly Speaker Ram Niwas Goel's decision to initiate disqualification proceedings against them.

"It is not obligatory on the part of the Speaker to decide on the preliminary objections first. It is for the Speaker to decide the disqualification proceedings. We leave this issue to be decided by the Speaker," a division bench of Chief Justice DN Patel and Justice C Harishankar observed.

"We find no reason to impose any mathematical formula for the House that it must decide the preliminary objection first or disqualification along with the objection together. It is the prerogative power of the Speaker to evolve his own procedure to conduct the proceedings in the House," it said.

Earlier, a single bench of Justice Vibhu Bakhru had dismissed the pleas of the rebel MLAs, citing lack of merit.

Both the legislators had moved the high court against the jurisdiction of the Speaker to hear the case of their dismissal.

On June 20, AAP MLA Saurav Bhardwaj had filed an anti-defection petition in the Assembly against Bajpai and Sehrawat for joining BJP earlier this year, following which Speaker had issued notice to them.