HC upholds Goa Speaker's order dismissing pleas seeking disqualification of 12 MLAs

The Goa Bench of the Bombay High Court on February 24 upheld the Goa Assembly Speaker’s order dismissing two petitions seeking disqualification of 12 MLAs who left their respective parties and joined the ruling BJP in 2019.

Goa Pradesh Congress Committee president Girish Chodankar had filed a disqualification petition against 10 party MLAs who switched over to the BJP in July 2019.

Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party MLA Sudin Dhavalikar had also filed a similar petition before the court against its two MLAs, who joined the BJP in the same year by splitting the regional party.

Goa Assembly Speaker Rajesh Patnekar on April 20 last year dismissed the disqualification petitions filed by Mr. Chodankar and Mr. Dhavalikar.

On February 24, a Division Bench of Justices Manish Pitale and R.N. Laddha said the two petitions stand dismissed. “The petitioners have not been able to make out a case for interference in the impugned orders passed by the Speaker,” the HC said.

“We hold the disqualification petitions filed by the petitioners were correctly dismissed by the Speaker,” the Bench said.

The court also said that the order passed by the Speaker rejecting the disqualification petitions “cannot be said to be militating against the object of introduction of the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution on the touchstone of political and constitutional morality”.