Office of profit: AAP MLAS want to cross examine Delhi govt officials
The 20 AAP MLAS, against whom the Election Commission on Thursday resumed disqualification hearing, have demanded crossexamination of Delhi government and state assembly officials to prove that their appointment as parliamentary secretaries does not come under the ambit of office-ofprofit. The EC resumed hearing in the case after the Delhi High Court set aside their disqualification for allegedly holding office-of-profit. The high court had termed the EC recommendation as ‘vitiated' and ‘bad in law' and directed the commission to hear the issue afresh.
In an application filed before the commission during the hearing, the MLAS said they would like to cross examine secretary of the Delhi legislative assembly, and officials of the law and accounts departments of the Delhi government to verify whether they derived any ‘profit' from their work, used official cars and office space in conduct of their duties. They also demanded cross examination of Prashant Patel, the complainant. The officials had filed documents before the EC on the issue of office of profit. “I have opposed the plea. The Delhi High Court had said the hearing should purely be on the issue of officeof-profit. It is not a civil court where cross examinations take place,” Patel later said.
He claimed that the EC, too, was not in favour of cross examination. Arguments would continue on May 21. The high court had said that with the poll body's opinion and the subsequent notification being set aside, the proceedings before the commission would continue from the stage the error and lapse occurred. The legislators, who were appointed parliamentary secretaries, had challenged their disqualification on the ground of holding office-of-profit.
The MLAS had alleged that the commission had not given them a hearing since March last year. However, the EC said that two opportunities were given to file written submissions. The MLAS are accused of holding office-of-profit as they were appointed parliamentary secretaries to ministers in the Delhi government in March 2015.