Four more AAP MLAs move HC against disqualification

NEW DELHI: Four more AAP MLAs today moved the Delhi High Court against their disqualification as legislators for holding offices of profit, claiming "defects" in the Election Commission's recommendation to the President.

Their pleas came up for hearing before a bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Chander Shekhar which issued notice to the EC seeking its response to the MLAs' petitions.

Advocate Amit Sharma, appearing for the EC, informed the court that the commission would not file a fresh reply and would go by the affidavit already filed with regard to the other eight AAP MLAs' plea challenging their disqualification.

The AAP MLAs contended the poll panel had sent its opinion to President Ram Nath Kovind "flouting the principles of natural justice".

"Principles of natural justice requires a fair opportunity of defence. They (the petitioners) were not given a fair opportunity to defend themselves," senior advocate Mohan Parasaran, appearing for some of the disqualified lawmakers, said.

He claimed there were procedural lapses as the EC decided against them without the required quorum.

Parasaran claimed one of the EC members had initially recused himself from hearing the matter but joined at the time of passing of the order disqualifying 20 AAP MLAs for holding offices of profit as parliamentary secretaries.

The high court has decided to hear the MLAs' appeal on a day-to-day basis and refused to adjourn the matter, even when it was sought by the senior advocate for the legislators.

"This case takes precedence over everything else," the bench said while declining to grant an adjournment for a day.

So far 12 AAP MLAs have challenged their disqualification.

The high court had on January 24 refused to stay the Centre's notification disqualifying the MLAs, but restrained the Commission from taking any "precipitate measures" such as announcing dates for bypolls to fill the vacancies.

The EC had recommended the disqualification of 20 AAP MLAs on January 19. The President had accepted the EC's opinion the very next day.

The senior counsel for the petitioners told the court that the president had taken cognizance of a complaint against the lawmakers by advocate Prashant Patel which was not signed.

To this the bench said whether the complaint was signed or not or was moved with malafide motive was not the subject before the court. It said it was not disputed that the 20 MLAs were appointed parliamentary secretaries.

Even the Delhi High Court had on September 8, 2016 set aside their appointment as parliamentary secretaries on the ground that they were appointed without the concurrence of the Lieutenant Governor (LG).

The arguments on behalf of the petitioners, which remained inconclusive, will resume tomorrow.

The 20 disqualified MLAs include

Adarsh Shastri

(Dwarka), Alka Lamba (Chandni Chowk), Anil Bajpai (Gandhi Nagar), Avtar Singh (Kalkaji), Kailash Gahlot (Najafgarh) -- who is also a minister -- Madan Lal (Kasturba Nagar), Manoj Kumar (Kondli), Naresh Yadav (Mehrauli), Nitin Tyagi (Laxmi Nagar), Praveen Kumar (Jangpura).

The others are Rajesh Gupta (Wazirpur), Rajesh Rishi (Janakpuri), Sanjeev Jha (Burari), Sarita Singh (Rohtas Nagar), Som Dutt (Sadar Bazar), Sharad Kumar (Narela), Shiv Charan Goel (Moti Nagar), Sukhbir Singh (Mundka), Vijendar Garg (Rajinder Nagar) and Jarnail Singh (Tilak Nagar).