HC directs that notices be served to six MLAs

The Jharkhand High Court Thursday directed that notices be served to six MLAs-- whose merger into the BJP from Jharkhand Vikas Morcha (Prajatantrik-JVM) was held "legal" by Speaker Dinesh Oraon on February 20.

Hearing a petition filed by JVM president Babulal Marandi and party's legislature party leader Pradip Yadav under the disqualification law of the 10th Schedule of the Constitution, Justice S N Prasad directed that notices be served to the six legislators and posted the case for further hearing after four weeks.

The six MLAs on whom the notices will be served are Land and Revenue Minister Amar Kumar Bauri, Agriculture Minister Randhir Kumar Singh, Ganesh Ganju, Naveen Jaiswal, Alok Chourasia and Janki Prasad.

Marandi's counsel R N Sahay argued that JVM has not merged with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) as a merger can take place only when the party decides.

In this case, six of the eight JVM MLAs had decided to merge with the BJP, which was contrary to law, he contended.

In February, 2015, the six MLAs had given a letter to the Speaker that they and their JVM party had merged with the saffron party and that they should be allowed to sit alongside the ruling BJP.

The Speaker said that prima facie he found the merger of the MLAs and the JVM party with the BJP as "legal" and arranged sitting arrangement on the ruling party benches.

Thereafter, Marandi and petitioned before the Speaker against his ruling and demanded disqualification of the six MLAs.

Subsequently, the Speaker held hearings from both the sides in his court and on February 20 this year and ruled that the merger of the six legislators and the JVM with the BJP four years ago was "legal" and rejected the petition of JVM, which had won eight seats in the 2014 Assembly elections.