Poll body resumes hearing in office-of-profit case
NEWDELHI: The election commission resumed hearing on the office-of-profit case against 20 Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLAS on Thursday.
The next date for hearing was set for May 21.
This was done following the Delhi High Court’s order setting aside the disqualification of these 20 legislators on the grounds that the poll panel’s recommendation in the case was against the “rule of natural justice”.
The plea was then sent back to the commission for fresh hearing.
On Thursday, the hearing started with Delhi’s transport minister Kailash Gahlot’s lawyer arguing that no financial benefits were derived from the office that was held by his client or the others.
The argument lasted for three hours where the lawyer said that the claims made by the Public Works Department (PWD), that lakhs were spent on designing offices of these 20 legislators, and that official vehicles were given to them, had no basis or proof.
On May 21, the next hearing, the lawyers of the remaining MLAS will also present their cases.
Alka Lamba, one of the MLAS who were recommended to be disqualified for holding the position of parliamentary secretaries to assist the ministers in the Delhi government, said that the hearing started at 3pm on Thursday.
“Many of us are yet to get a chance to present our case. However, we will ask the panel to cross examine the claims that we were given cars and money was spent in decorating our offices,” she said.
Nineteen MLAS, except for the MLA from Rohtas Nagar Sarita Singh, were present at the hearing with their lawyers on Thursday.
The panel had in April dis- patched notices to all legislators, informing that chief election Commissioner OP Rawat, and election commissioners Sunil Arora and Ashok Lavasa, would conduct an oral hearing in the matter.
This was done after the AAP cried foul against the disqualification, which was cleared by President Ram Nath Kovind, claiming that their MLAS were not given a chance for an oral hearing in the case.
They had also claimed that they had not received any remuneration or additional facilities such as official cars and houses for holding these positions.