JASWANT SINGH GURJAR Vs. HONBLE SPEAKER RAJASTHAN VIDHANSABHA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This writ petition has been filed by the Petitioner Jaswant Singh Gurjar, who is former MLA and a resident of Dholpur in Rajasthan, under Articles 226 and 227 of the Constitution of India with the following prayer:

(2.) Brief facts of the case are that the Petitioner submitted a petition under para 2(1) of Schedule X and Article 191 of the Constitution of India on 21-4-2009 before the Respondent No. 1 Hon'ble Speaker, Rajasthan State Legislative Assembly seeking disqualification of one Mr. Giriraj Singh Mallinga, who was elected as MLA for the 13th House of Rajasthan State Legislative Assembly in December 2008, from Bari Constituency. It has been stated that Mr. Giriraj Singh Mallinga had voluntarily given up the membership of his original political party BSP which had set him up as a candidate in the elections for the 13th Assembly of Rajasthan in December 2008 from Bari Constituency on 4-4-2009 and therefore the disqualification prescribed under para 2(1) of the Schedule X was squarely attracted and he deserved to be disqualified by the Hon'ble Speaker in exercise of powers vesting in him under para 6 of the Schedule X. The Petitioner further submits that the protection of provisions prescribed in para 4 of the schedule X were not available to Mr. Giriraj Singh Mallinga (hereinafter referred to as the defecting MLA) because the para 4(1) needed merger of the original political party into the other political party and for the purpose of para 4(1) the merger was permissible and come into operation only as per para 4(2) if not less than two thirds of the members of legislative party of the concerned MLA in the house have agreed to "such merger" as prescribed in para 4(1) of the X Schedule.

(3.) It is stated that after filing of the petition before the speaker on 21-4-2009, the Petitioner came to know through newspapers in the month of May 2009 that the Speaker held the action of the MLA impugned therein in leaving his original political party and joining Indian National Congress as legally tenable and the application filed by the Petitioner is pending adjudication before the Hon'ble Speaker and the Hon'ble Speaker is not passing the order on the application filed by the Petitioner and arbitrarily fixed 3-5-2010. The Petitioner stated that under these compulsive circumstances he filed an application before the Hon'ble Speaker at the first available opportunity i.e. on the date of first hearing, which took place on 7-7-2009 praying for releasing the petition No. 01/2009 submitted on 21-4-2009 earlier under Schedule X and Article 191 of the Constitution of India for its adjudication by the Hon'ble High Court.