K'taka: SC to hear disqualified MLAs' plea challenging fmr speaker's decision today

New Delhi, Sep 11: The Supreme Court will hear on Wednesday disqualified Karnataka MLAs' plea challenging State Assembly's former Speaker Ramesh Kumar's decision over disqualification.

On August 27, 2019, the apex court agreed to consider an urgent plea made by several disqualified Karnataka MLAs for an early hearing of their petitions challenging their ouster from the State Assembly by former Speaker Ramesh Kumar under the anti-defection law.

The petitions were orally mentioned before a Bench led by Justice N.V. Ramana by senior advocate V. Giri. Justice Ramana said the Listing Registrar of the SC would look into their plea. The disqualified JD(S) MLAs A H Vishwanath, K Gopalaiah and Narayana Gowda, filed a joint petition challenging the July 28 decision of disqualification by K R Ramesh Kumar.

The MLAs separate petitions have arraigned the then Speaker of the State of Karnataka, Congress Legislature Party leader Siddaramaiah and State Congress president Dinesh Gundurao and former Karnataka Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy as respondents.

The petitions urged the court to set aside the former Speaker's decision to disqualify them from the Karnataka Legislative Assembly.

A total of 17 rebel MLAs were disqualified from the House ahead of the July 29 trust vote moved by then chief minister H D Kumaraswamy. Kumaraswamy lost the floor test, paving the way for a BJP-led government in the state under B S Yediyurappa.

Two rebel Congress leaders Ramesh L Jharkhiholi and Mahesh Kumathalli and an independent leader R Shanker, who were disqualified on July 25, had moved the apex court on July 29. Other 14 rebel MLAs were disqualified on July 28 by then-Speaker K R Ramesh Kumar. After the fall of the Congress-JD(S) government on July 29, Ramesh Kumar had resigned as the Speaker.