Anti-Defection Law Doesn’t Apply: 6 ‘Rebel’ Congress MLAs To Himachal Speaker

The six Congress MLAs, who were issued a show-cause notice for defying the whip for the Rajya Sabha polls on Tuesday, appeared before the Speaker along with their lawyer and argued that they had not been provided all the relevant documents.

Senior advocate Satya Pal Jain, who represented the six Congress MLAs before the Speaker, argued that they were only given the notice and the copy of the petition filed on Tuesday evening while other annexures were not supplied to them.

Mr Jain said according to rules, seven days have to be given to the MLAs for filing the reply the copy of the petition is supplied to them.

The petition has been filed by the Congress against the six MLAs who cross-voted in the Rajya Sabha elections.

Mr Jain said there are five or six conditions under the anti-defection law, including seven days’ time for reply, which have to be complied with. Even after supplying the copy of the petition, seven days have to be given for filing the reply, he said.

He asserted that the anti-defection law does not apply to voting in Rajya Sabha polls, adding that the Supreme Court has repeatedly said this.

“We have urged the Speaker to give at least one week’s time as per the principle of natural justice for filing the reply,” Mr Jain said.