Cong MLC moves HC seeking appointment of AG in Maharashtra

Congress MLC Sanjay Dutt today moved the Bombay High Court seeking a direction to the Maharashtra government to appoint a regular Advocate General in place of the current acting Advocate General.
His lawyer Ashish Mehta mentioned the petition before a division bench headed by Justice S C Dharmadhikari which said it would hear the matter after Diwali vacation.
Dutt's petition said the court should declare that the post of 'acting Advocate General' was unconstitutional, and appointment of Advocate General should be made only as per the provisions of Article 165 of the Constitution.
Seeking to clarify he was not questioning the professional capability of acting Advocate General Rohit Deo, he said he wanted a direction to the government to follow the constitutional provisions.

Deo was functioning as an acting AG for the last seven months, while under the Constitution no post of 'acting AG' exists, he said.
Dutt had also raised the issue in the state legislature earlier, the petition said.
Pending hearing and final disposal of the petition, the high court may pass an interim order directing the government to withdraw the charge given to the acting Advocate General, said the petition.
Deo was appointed as acting AG after previous Advocate General Srihari Aney was forced to resign. Aney's open support for separate Vidarbha had incurred him the wrath of political parties including the ruling ally Shiv Sena who are opposed to the idea of statehood for the region.