HC defers hearing on rebel Congress MLAs till today

A single Bench of Justice UC Dhyani at the Nainital high court on Monday deferred a case, pertaining to the disqualification of nine Congress rebel MLAs, for Tuesday. 

The rebel Congress MLAs of Uttarakhand, who were disqualified by the Assembly Speaker after their revolt against former Chief Minister Harish Rawat, on Monday told the High Court that that going against the state government was not tantamount to going against the party.

During a hearing on a petition by the rebel Congress MLAs, challenging their disqualification, the MLAs’ lawyer Dinesh Dwiwedi argued that going against the state government was not tantamount to going against the party, and hence, their disqualification under the anti-defection law was not correct.

The Court will decide if the MLAs will be entitled to vote or not in the making of the government, when the Assembly is in suspended animation. 

The rebels had challenged their disqualification by the Uttarakhand Assembly Speaker the same day when state was put under President’s Rule on March 27. President Rule was imposed in the state just a day ahead when the Harish Rawat government was to prove its strength on the floor of the Assembly.

Defending Congress rebel MLAs, their  counsel stressed on the point that merely raising voice against working style of the then CM Harish Rawat and demand for division of vote for Appropriation Bill in the Assembly did not empower the Speaker to disqualify their Assembly membership under the anti-defection law.