As many as eight disqualified AIADMK MLAs filed petitions in the Madras High Court challenging Tamil Nadu Assembly Speaker P. Dhanapal’s action against them after Justice M. Duraiswamy granted them permission to do so on Tuesday morning. The rest of the 10 disqualified legislators are planning to file their writ petitions on Wednesday and get them tagged along with the eight cases on the same day.
Those who had filed writ petitions on Tuesday included P. Vetrivel (Perambur), N.G. Parthiban (Sholinghur), P. Palaniappan (Pappireddipatti) , C. Jayanthi Padmanabhan (Gudiyattam), V. Senthil Balaji (Aravakurichi), S. Muthiah (Paramakudi), R. Murugan (Harur) and R. Balasubramani (Ambur).
The petitioners have urged the court to quash their disqualification orders published in the government gazette on Monday by relying upon a judgement delivered by the Supreme Court in Balchandra L. Jarkiholi versus B.S. Yeddyurappa on May 13, 2011, in a similar case of disqualification of MLAs by the Speaker of the Karnataka State Legislative Assembly.
The cases would be heard on Wednesday.
Incidentally, a writ petition filed by DMK working president M.K. Stalin last week seeking a direction to the Governor as well as the Speaker to conduct the trust vote immediately would also be coming up for hearing before the same judge on Wednesday for the Advocate-General Vijay Narayan to enunciate the stand of the Governor on the issue.
Passing interim orders in that case on Friday last, Justice Duraiswamy had restrained the Governor and Speaker from holding the floor test till Wednesday since Mr. Stalin’s counsel apprehended that the test could be conducted any time after disqualifying the 18 dissident MLAs in order to convert a “minority government” into a one that enjoys “artificial majority.”
On Friday, the judge had initially asked the Advocate-General to find out from the Speaker if there were any plans to pass orders on the proceedings initiated against the MLAs during the weekend. The A-G reverted to the court to state: “The Speaker’s stand is that he has just started the process of decision making. The hearing [on the proceedings initiated against the MLAs] has not taken place. They have not filed their replies [to the show-cause notices]. He has given an opportunity of personal hearing to them. Once that is over, he shall pass orders.”
The A-G also said: “He (the Speaker) is not in a position to give an assurance to the court as to when will he complete the process. This is a constitutional function, and once started, it cannot be interdicted. Courts normally would be hesitant to interfere in such issues... If any action is taken against the MLAs, then it is always subject to judicial review.”
Further, stating that the Speaker need not necessarily disqualify the MLAs and that there was a possibility of even dropping the proceedings against the MLAs if the situation demands so, the A-G had said: “He has started the process, he has to hear them and make up his mind. He may very well come to a conclusion that there are no materials to act against them.”
Breather for Palaniappan
Meanwhile, the Madras High Court granted anticipatory bail to former Higher Education Minister and disqualified AIADMK MLA P. Palaniappan, in a case registered against him by the Crime Branch-Criminal Investigation Department (CB-CID) for allegedly abetting a government civil contractor’s suicide.
Justice P.N. Prakash passed the order after observing that custodial interrogation would not be necessary since none of the acts such as instigating and conspiring, which have been listed under Section 107 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), had been committed in order to attract the offence of abetment of suicide under Section 306 of the IPC.
