HC hearing on Arunachal Pradesh Assembly to continue tomorrow

The Gauhati High Court today heard a batch of interlocutory applications filed by Arunachal Pradesh Assembly's Deputy Speaker Kalikho Pul and some MLAs to vacate or modify the Court's earlier order of keeping the Assembly's December 16 proceedings in abeyance.
Justice B K Sharma, after hearing the applications, fixed the case for further hearing tomorrow.
The High Court had on December 21 given an order directing not to hold any session till January 4, 2016 of Arunachal Pradesh Assembly after hearing a batch of interlocutory applications filed by the Deputy Speaker of the Assembly and some MLAs.
The interlocutory applications were a prayer to vacate/modify the court's interim order dated December 17 last on the ground that under Article 212, the proceedings of any legislature of a state cannot be interfered with by the court.

The applicants had stated that the court had interfered with its interim order keeping in abeyance the decision(s) of the session held on December 16, 2015.
The writ petition by the Speaker of Arunachal Pradesh Assembly, Nabam Rebia, was filed challenging the notification issued by Governor J P Rajkhowa on December 9 preponing the assembly session to December 16 from January 14, 2016 and also the notification issued by the Deputy Speaker restoring the suspended 14 MLAs.

The writ petition had also challenged the order of the Deputy Speaker for holding of the session at a new place and the decision(s) of the December 16 session.

Justice Hrishikesh Roy, after hearing the case on December 17, had issued notice and in the interim kept in abeyance the decisions of the assembly passed in the December 16 session and had fixed the case for hearing on February 1, 2016.
A political crisis was triggered in Arunachal Pradesh with 21 of the 47 Congress MLAs in the 60-member House, along with 11 BJP and two independent MLAs, extended support to the Deputy Speaker.
The Deputy Speaker was elected the Chief Minister in a session preponed by Governor J P Rajkhowa to December 16 from January 14, 2016 and held in makeshift premises, following which the Speaker filed a petition challenging both the notifications.