Hc Rejects Writ Against Patil On Trust Vote

The Delhi High Court yesterday dismissed a writ petition against former Speaker Shivraj Patil, alleging that he forged parliamentary documents to show that the no-confidence motion against P V Narasimha Rao government in the 10th Lok Sabha on July 28, 1993 was defeated when in fact it was passed.

A division bench consisting of Justice Y K Sabharwal and Justice D K Jain, rejecting the submissions of petitioner organisation, the Rashtriya Mukti Morcha, said that no public interest would be served as the 10th Lok Sabha has already been dissolved and after election the 11th Lok Sabha has been constituted.

 

Hence, the bench said, it is not a fit case to be entertained by the court exercising its powers under Article 226 of the Constitution.

However, it said, that the dismissal of the petition is without prejudice and the petitioner can raise the matter at appropriate level.

The no-confidence motion of July 1993 was defeated with 251 votes for the motion and 265 against.

The petitioner, through counsel P N Lekhi, said that of the 265 MPs listed in the list prepared under the Speakers direction, 20 MPs had voted for and against the motion and their votes were counted only against the motion.

Lekhi, during his hour-long arguments, tried to show to the court that a fraud has been committed on the people of India and a government, which had actually fallen, was allowed to continue by the forgery of documents.

When the court asked the petitioner to go through the ordinary course of action and approach the police for the alleged forgery, Lekhi said, Will the police be able to confront Parliament and the so-called privilege they claim.

He said that it was the high court which could ask the secretary-general of the Lok Sabha, who was also made a respondent, to reply as to why authenticated list of MPs indicating voting pattern published by the Lok Sabha secretariat was different from the table officers list inside the House.

Lekhi said that his intention to come to the court when the Lok Sabha was celebrating its 50th birth anniversary today was to tell the MPs to be vigilant against such kind of forgery being committed even by the Speaker and a reminder to the Speakers of the future the words of B R Ambedkar on the constitutional morality.

However, the judges were not impressed with the arguments and dismissed the petition.