Express News Service
NEW DELHI: All eyes will be on the Supreme Court on Friday, when at 10.30 am it will hear a Congress-JD(S) petition challenging Karnataka Governor Vajubhai Vala’s decision to invite the BJP to form the government. During the over three-hour hearing that began well past Wednesday midnight, a three-judge bench comprising justices A K Sikri, Ashok Bhushan and S A Bobde asked B S Yeddyurappa, now sworn in chief minister, to submit a copy of the letter he gave the Governor while staking his claim to form government.
The hearing saw arguments from all sides with Attorney General K K Venugopal stating, “Anti-defection law would come into force only after the MLAs are sworn in.” Does that mean all the suitcase exchange is possible before they are sworn in? That’s impermissible,” the bench quipped. Congress-JD(S) on Thursday moved a fresh petition against the decision of governor Vajubhai Vala to nominate an Anglo-Indian member to the assembly, saying it should not be done till the floor test in the House.
The petition is likely to be heard on Friday along with the main petition. In the petition, the Congress-JD(S) has sought a direction that the nomination of Anglo-Indian Vinisha Nero be set aside till Yeddyurappa undergoes a floor test to prove his majority. Meanwhile, legal luminary Ram Jethmalani also moved the Supreme Court in his personal capacity against the decision of Karnataka governor Vajubhai Vala to invite the Bharatiya Janta Party to form the government in the state.
“The governor’s order is a gross abuse of the constitutional power and this has brought disrepute to the constitutional office he has been holding,” Jethmalani submitted while seeking nod to submit his views in the case. A bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra asked Jethmalani to mention the case on Friday before the concerned bench which will reassemble tomorrow for hearing the case further. He said that he has not come before the court in favour or against any party but has been hurt over the unconstitutional decision taken by the Governor.
