SC declines stay on disqualification of 6 Congress MLAs in Himachal
New Delhi, March 18: The Supreme Court of India has refused to intervene in the disqualification of six Congress MLAs from the Himachal Pradesh Assembly, who were expelled by Speaker Kuldeep Singh Pathania on February 29 for their involvement in cross-voting during the Rajya Sabha election.
Despite their petition, the Supreme Court refused to stay the disqualification, acknowledging that the affected legislators would not be permitted to vote or participate in the Assembly proceedings.
Instead, the apex court has scheduled a hearing for May to consider whether the fresh byepolls announced by the Election Commission for the vacant seats should be halted. The Bench, chaired by Justice Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Dipankar Datta, indicated that staying the disqualification would render the petition moot.
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Senior advocates Harish Salve and Maninder Singh, representing the disqualified MLAs, argued that the Election Commission's decision to conduct simultaneous polls for the six assembly seats along with the final phase of the Lok Sabha elections on June 1 complicates the situation further.
While the Supreme Court has declined to stay the disqualification, it has left open the question of whether the bye-elections should proceed as scheduled.
Notably, the outcome of the Supreme Court's deliberations in May will have significant implications for the political landscape in Himachal Pradesh, as well as for the disqualified legislators and their future prospects in the Assembly. Until then, the status quo remains, with the disqualification standing and the possibility of fresh elections hanging in the balance.
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