New Delhi: The Delhi high court on Friday dismissed a plea by Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) leader Chirag Paswan challenging the Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla’s decision to recognise his uncle Pashupati Kumar Paras as the leader of the party in the House.
Justice Rekha Palli said there was no merit in the petition as the Speaker has the right to regulate the internal disputes of the House. The judge added that the court cannot be asked to solve the internal party disputes.
“Now it is very clear. If you want to press, it is your wish. I am clear that this is inter-party dispute. You can exercise your remedies. You take your call…But the court cannot get into this dispute,” Justice Palli said.
“It is well settled that the right to regulate internal disputes of the House is the prerogative of the Speaker,” the high court said. “I find absolutely no merit in the petition. The petition is dismissed,” Justice Palli added.
The high court, which was inclined to impose cost on Chirag, did not do so after a request regarding the same was made by his counsel.
{{/usCountry}}The high court, which was inclined to impose cost on Chirag, did not do so after a request regarding the same was made by his counsel.
{{/usCountry}}The petition sought setting aside Lok Sabha Speaker’s June 14 circular showing the name of Paras as the leader of LJP. Paras took oath as a Union minister on July 7 after Prime Minister Narendra Modi reshuffled his Cabinet.
During the hearing, advocate Arvind Bajpai, representing Chirag, said among the six party MPs, five wrote to the Speaker to recognise Paras as leader of the party in the House and directions were passed in this regard.
Thereafter, the party chose to remove those five MPs and approached the Speaker to take action and declare Chirag as the leader of the party in the House, Bajpai added. However, the Speaker has “not corrected” the alleged mistake of recognising Paras as the leader of the party in the House, he contended.
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the Centre, and senior advocate Raj Shekhar Rao, representing the Speaker’s office, vehemently opposed the petition, saying Chirag was attempting to get the inter-party dispute resolved in the court.
They said five out of six members of the party had approached the Speaker with the fact that Paras was the whip holder of the party and that the action of the Speaker cannot be faulted with.
The court, while agreeing to the submissions of the counsels, said it was not inclined to grant any relief.
Chirag had filed the plea on July 7 and later tweeted in Hindi, saying he has filed a petition in the Delhi high Court against the Lok Sabha Speaker’s initial decision recognising party’s expelled member of Parliament Pashupati Paras as the leader of the party in the House.
The plea said the review of the decision was pending with the Speaker and despite reminders no action has been taken after which they have approached the high court.
It sought direction that a corrigendum be issued by showing the name of Chirag Paswan as leader of the party in the House.