SC rejects Haryana ex-MLAs' plea against disqualification

New Delhi, Dec 11 (UNI) The Supreme Court today dismissed six former Haryana MLAs' petitions challenging their disqualification from the Assembly during the then Om Prakash Chautala regime in June 2004, ahead of the Rajya Sabha bye-elections.

A Bench comprising Chief Justice Y K Sabharwal and Justices C K Thakkar and P K Balasubramanyan, dismissed the petitions of Jagjit Singh Sangwan (NCP), Karan Singh Dalal (RPI) and Jai Prakash Gupta Rajinder Singh Bisla, Bhim Sen Mehta and Devraj Dewan (all Independents), who had defected to the Congress and were disqualified by the then Speaker Satbir Singh Kadian under the anti-defection law.

The apex court's decision would affect the pension, allowances and facilities availed by the petitioners as former legislators.

However, Karan Singh Dalal was again elected to the Haryana Assembly from the Congress Party in February, 2005 Assembly polls.

The apex court said the petitions were devoid of merit as the total strength of these MLAs was less than the requisite strength and hence their act of changing the party cannot be called as split and therefore, they were liable to be disqualified under the provisions of the anti-defection law.

Earlier, the court had stayed the then Speaker's order disqualifying the petitioners.

The petitioners had alleged that the step was ''politically motivated'' and had been taken just a couple of days before the Rajya Sabha elections to ensure victory of INLD candidate Ajay Chautala, and the INLD-supported Independent candidate and Chairman of the National Commission for Minorities, Tarlochan Singh.

The Congress candidate Kiran Chaudhary failed to make it to the Upper House of Parliament by a slim margin.

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