‘ AAP MLAs’ plea to quash EC order not maintainable’

The Election Commission has told the Delhi high court that AAP MLAs’ plea seeking quashing of their disqualification from the Delhi Assembly for holding office- of- profit was “not maintainable” and is liable to be “dismissed”. A two- judge bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Chander Shekhar was also told that the AAP MLAs have challenged the Election Commission’s recommendation, which is non- existent once President Ram Nath Kovind has taken a decision on it.

The poll panel said that the MLAs have not challenged the President’s January 20 decision, by which its recommendation was accepted. The commission was responding to the MLAs plea seeking quashing of the decision to disqualify them from the Delhi Legislative Assembly. Earlier, the commission had told the court that it would rely upon the opinion it gave to the President to disqualify the 20 MLAs who were appointed as parliamentary secretaries.

The high court had on January 24 refused to stay the Centre’s notification disqualifying the MLAs, but restrained the EC from taking any “precipitate measures” such as announcing dates for by- polls. Later on January 30, the court extended till February 7 the interim order restraining the EC from issuing any notification announcing by- elections to fill the vacancies of the 20 Assembly seats whose legislators had been disqualified.