The Supreme Court Today (Dec 13) refused to entertain a plea challenging the decision of the Goa assembly speaker to reject the disqualification petition of the Congress against eight of its MLAs who defected to the ruling BJP. A bench comprising Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna and Sanjay Kumar asked Congress leader Girish Chodankar, who filed the plea in the court, to move the Goa bench of the Bombay High Court to challenge the speaker’s decision.
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NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court, on Friday, declined to entertain a plea challenging the Goa assembly speaker’s decision to reject the disqualification petition filed by the Congress against eight of its MLAs who defected to the ruling BJP.
A bench led by Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Sanjay Kumar directed Congress leader Girish Chodankar, who had filed the plea, to approach the Goa bench of the Bombay High Court for further recourse.
On November 1, Speaker Ramesh Tawadkar of the Goa assembly dismissed the disqualification petition filed by the Congress.
The petition, submitted by former Goa Congress chief Girish Chodankar, sought the disqualification of eight MLAs—Digambar Kamat, Aleixo Sequeira, Sankalp Amonkar, Michael Lobo, Delilah Lobo, Kedar Naik, Rudolf Fernandes, and Rajesh Faldesai—who had switched allegiance to the BJP.
In his ruling, Speaker Tawadkar stated,
“Upon the merger of the original political party of the elected member with another political party, the elected member will not face disqualification in either contingency i.e., whether he chooses to go with the merger or disagrees with the same.”
The speaker’s decision was grounded on the principle that disqualification on the basis of defection is not applicable in cases of a merger.
“Disqualification on grounds of defection will not apply in case of merger,”
-Tawadkar reiterated in his ruling.
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