Delhi HC quashes notification disqualifying 20 AAP MLAs

In a major relief to the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), the Delhi High Court today set aside the disqualification of its 20 MLAs in the office-of-profit case.

A bench of justices Sanjiv Khanna and Chander Shekhar said that the Centre's notification disqualifying the AAP MLAs was bad in law and remanded their plea back to the Election Commission which will hear it afresh.

Terming the Election Commission's recommendation on disqualification as "vitiated", the bench said that there was violation of natural justice and no oral hearing was given to the MLAs before disqualifying them as legislators of the Delhi Assembly.

"Opinion of Election Commission of India (given to the President of India) dated January 19, 2018, is vitiated and bad in law for failure to comply with principles of natural justice," the court said.

An elated Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said it is a victory of truth.