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Supreme Court holds crucial hearing ahead of Rajasthan HC order on Pilot vs Gehlot crisis
Rajasthan assembly Speaker CP Joshi had said at a press conference on Wednesday that he decided to move the Supreme Court after high court sent an order to his office giving a “direction” to him.
The Supreme Court is hearing a petition filed by Rajasthan assembly Speaker CP Joshi against a high court order directing him to defer disqualification proceedings against Sachin Pilot and 18 other dissident Congress MLAs.
The petition is being heard by a bench of Justices Arun Mishra, B R Gavai and Krishna Murari. The hearing comes a day before the Rajasthan high court is expected to given an order on a petition by Pilot and other dissidents challenging the disqualification notices.
Seeking an interim stay on the high court order, Joshi has said in his petition that it is the top court’s duty to ensure that all constitutional authorities act within the “Lakshman rekha” drawn for each one of them.
He argued that the disqualification proceedings under the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution are the business of the legislature, and cannot be interfered with.
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Pilot, too, has moved a caveat in the Supreme Court to ensure that no orders are passed on Joshi’s petition without hearing him and his supporting MLAs. A caveat is a notice seeking that certain actions may not be taken without informing the person who gave the notice.
Joshi had said at a press conference on Wednesday that he decided to move the Supreme Court after high court sent an order to his office giving a “direction” to him.
The order by the court of Chief Justice Indrajit Mahanty and Justice Prakash Gupta said its proceedings will resume Friday and requested the Speaker also to put on hold any action on the notices till then, recording that “we direct accordingly”.
The disqualification notices were issued on the request of Rajasthan chief whip who said that the dissident MLAs did not attend the party’s CLP meetings. Pilot and other dissidents, meanwhile, argued that a whip cannot be issued when the assembly is not in session.
The Congress has 107 members in the 200-member state assembly and the BJP 72.
If the 19 dissidents are disqualified, the half-mark in the House will be slashed to 91, seeming making it easier for Gehlot to retain majority support.
