Five INLD defectors cease to be members

May have to pay back five months’ salary and perks

CHANDIGARH :Haryana assembly speaker Kanwar Pal on Tuesday ordered that five Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) MLAS who switched sides would cease to be a member of the Haryana legislative assembly with effect from March 27, 2019.

The five are: Pirthi Singh, Rajdeep Phogat, Naina Singh Chautala, Shri Anoop Dhanak (all joined JJP) and Naseem Ahmad (joined the BJP). Hindustan Times had reported on August 1 that the five face inevitable ouster in view of the Supreme Court orders.

Interestingly, all five had tendered their resignations, which were accepted by the Speaker well before they were disqualified as MLAS on Tuesday under the provisions of the Tenth Schedule to the Constitution. As such their disqualifications become notional. The only possible impact of their being disqualified from a retrospective date could be the recovery of the salary and allowances they earned as legislators between March 27 and September 10. Every member of Haryana assembly costs the state exchequer approximately about ₹2 lakh per month.

Ordering their disqualification, the assembly speaker in his order said that the act of voluntarily giving up membership from the original political party may be either expressed or implied. “It is not necessary that member is required to submit resignation from the membership of his original political party. In the present case, as per the evidence available on record, looking into the act and conduct of respondents, it certainly amounts to their giving up membership of the original party – the Indian National Lok Dal, which had set them up as candidate for election,” the order said.

The speaker also said, “Though their resignations from the membership of Haryana assembly have been accepted by me earlier, yet in such situation there can be no escape from the conclusion that the respondents have incurred disqualification from the membership on the ground of defection under provisions of Tenth Schedule to the Constitution read with Article 191(2) of the Constitution.”

HARYANA ASSEMBLY SPEAKER KANWAR PAL ORDERED FIVE INLD MLAS WHO SWITCHED SIDES WOULD CEASE TO BE A MEMBER WITH EFFECT FROM MARCH 27