Delhi HC orders EC to make no bypoll announcement until Monday

The court also ordered the Election Commission (EC) to make no announcement whatsoever for bypolls in Delhi until the next date of hearing of the AAP MLAs' plea, which it set for January 29. The disqualification necessitates bypolls in the 20 Delhi constituencies the MLAs are from.

In addition, the Delhi HC ordered the EC and the Centre - which disqualified the 20 AAP MLAs last week- to file their reply on the AAP MLAs' pleas challenging their disqualification, by February 6. The high court summoned all the records pertaining to the proceedings leading to the recommendation of the EC to disqualify the 20 MLAs.

On Tuesday, AAP legislators moved the Delhi HC against their disqualification, which President Ram Nath Kovind gave his assent to on Sunday. Last Friday, the EC sent President Kovind its recommendation to disqualify the AAP MLAs for holding offices of profit.

Five of the former AAP legislators argued in their plea that the EC had acted in "undue haste", and without "affording" and "giving an opportunity of a fair hearing" to the petitioners.

"Respondent number 1 (the EC) has acted contrary to the principles of natural justice by willfully depriving the petitioners to submit oral submissions," the legislators' petition filed through counsel Manish Vashist argued.

The ex-MLAs further argued that the EC "failed to follow due process of law by not offering the petitioners a full hearing before making the final opinion to the President". As well, the EC did not consider that "parliamentary secretary" was a "mere post" and not an 'office'.