HC bans term Dalit in official communication
BHOPAL/GWALIOR: The Gwalior bench of Madhya Pradesh high court has banned the use of term Dalit in official communication. In its order delivered on Monday, the court said, “The state and Central government should refrain from using the nomenclature Dalit as it doesn’t find any mention in the Constitution or statute.” Social activist Mohan Lal Mohor had filed a PIL in the high court about a month ago. ››
NEWD ELHI: The Delhi High Court will hear on Wednesday fresh petitions filed by 20 AAP MLAs, challenging the Cent re’ s notification against their disqualification for holding an office of profit.
The fresh petitions, which were filed aday after their earlier pleas became infructuous on account of the President giving his assent to the Election Commission’s recommendation to disqualify them, said the decision by the President as well as the Election Commission (EC) were taken in “undue haste”.
The MLAs, whose appointment to the post of parliamentary secretaries was held as office of profit, contended that the entire episode leading to their disqualification was a clear manifestation of the process in which they were denied the principle of natural justice of being heard.
Their petitions were mentioned on Tuesday before a bench of Justice sS Ra vin dr aB hat and A K Chawla, which listed them for hearing on Wednesday.
Advocate Manish Vashisht, appearing for five legislators, submitted that “the findings of the EC are contrary to Article 14 (equality before the law) of the Constitution of India, ultra vires, void a bin it io and an attack on the basic fabric of democracy.”
The move came after the A AP MLAs on Tuesday withdrew their pleas challenging the Elec- ti on Commission’ s recommendation which had received Presidential as sent.
On January 19, the poll panel had made the recommendation for the disqualification of the 20 legislators, which was given assent by the President.
On January 20, the Ministry of Law and Justice issued a notification that the President held that the 20 MLAs stand disqualified under Section 15(1)(a)of the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (GNCTD) Act.
The EC had made the recommendation while deciding a plea by advocate Pr ash ant Pa tel, who had sought disqualification of 21 AA PM L As for holding the office of parliamentary secretaries, which he had said amounted to office of profit.
The proceedings against Jarnail Singh were dropped after he resigned as the Rajouri Garden MLA to contest the Punjab Assembly polls.
The plea by the MLAs sought quashing and setting aside of the January 19 opinion of the election commission and the Centre’s January 20 notification stating the President had held that the 20 MLAs stand disqualified under the GNCTD Act.
The notification came after the EC wrote to the President recommending disqualification of 20 AAP MLAs for holding office of profit while serving as parliamentary secretaries between March 13, 2015 and September 8, 2016.