The Congress Monday welcomed the supreme court's order to stay the Election Commission's March 10 decision notifying Gujarat's Talala Assembly constituency seat as vacant and declaring a byelection there.
The Opposition party said the government has failed in its efforts and in the "conspiracy" to make the EC declare the bypoll, which was to be held along with upcoming Lok Sabha elections.
The BJP, which has already declared its nominee from the seat in Gir Somnath district, said the party would accept the order of both the apex court and the poll panel, which are Constitutional bodies.
Earlier in the day, a bench headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi also issued notice to the poll panel on a plea filed by former Congress MLA B D Barad, who had challenged his disqualification as an MLA and the subsequent EC's decision notifying the seat as vacant.
"The BJP used the government machinery to get our Talala MLA disqualified and the seat vacated. The ruling party misused the EC to get the bypoll declared even after Barad's conviction was stayed," said senior Congress leader Arjun Modhwadiya.
"The government has failed in its effort and the conspiracy to make the EC declare a byelection in Talala. The BJP was so much in hurry that it even declared a candidate," he said.
Leader of Opposition in the Legislative Assembly Paresh Dhanani and state unit Congress president Amit Chavda tweeted, "Satyamev Jayate (Truth alone triumphs)".
Dhanani attacked the BJP for "shaming democracy", while Chavda said the EC had declared the bypoll "in haste and without following the due process of law".
Gujarat BJP spokesperson Bharat Pandya said the matter was between the supreme court and the EC.
"Both are Constitutional and independent bodies. Whatever decision they take as per law will have to be accepted, and we will accept their order," he said.
Barad moved the SC against the Gujarat High Court's March 27 verdict dismissing his petition against his disqualification as an MLA and also against the EC's decision notifying the bypolls there.
Barad was disqualified as an MLA by the assembly speaker on March 5 following his conviction in a case.
Barad was convicted by a magisterial court on March 1 in a case for offence under section 379 (punishment for theft) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and was sentenced to two years and nine month jail along with a fine of Rs 2,500.
On the same day, the magistrate had suspended the sentence and released him on bail.
Later, he challenged the order before a Sessions court which stayed his conviction on March 7.
However, on March 5, the Speaker disqualified Barad and also notified the assembly seat as vacant.
On March 15, the high court had quashed the Sessions court's March 7 order staying his conviction in the case.
In its March 27 order, a division bench of the high court had said that it would not interfere with the notification of Election Commission as Barad's conviction was not stayed and therefore, his disqualification remains.
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