Panaji: The Bombay High Court at Goa on Tuesday admitted a petition filed by Congress MLAs demanding the disqualification of Minister for Health Vishwajit Rane, saying it found prima facie merit in the matter. It rejected the preliminary objection raised by the respondent and the State government to the petition that it should have been filed before the Speaker.
The court also directed the Election Commission of India to communicate the date for the bye-election to the Valpoi Assembly constituency well in advance. Mr. Rane was Congress MLA from Valpoi before resigning and joining the BJP, which invited the disqualification petition.
As the Assembly Speaker and Protem Speaker are yet to reply to its notices, the court gave them four weeks to reply. Both petitioner and respondent have been given four weeks to file their say in the main petition. For now, the court has kept the issue of the where the petition should have been filed open, which would be taken up in the final hearing.
Fifteen Congress MLAs and then AICC general secretary in charge of Goa Chellakumar had filed a petition in the HC seeking disqualification of Mr. Rane for failing to be present in the House and vote as per the party whip on the confidence motion tabled by Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar in March. Mr. Rane had submitted his resignation as Congress MLA from Valpoi constituency the same evening to Protem Speaker Siddarth Kunocliekar, a BJP legislator. He was later inducted into the State Cabinet after joining the BJP.
The Congress’s contention is that an MLA cannot defect and thereafter resign, contest election against the vacancy created after his resignation and return to same House.
