Gujarat assembly speaker Rajendra Trivedi reinstates suspended Congress MLA Bhagwan Barad

GANDHINAGAR: Suspended Congress MLA Bhagwan Barad alias Bhaga Barad has been reinstated by Gujarat assembly speaker Rajendra Trivedi. Barad’s suspension has been revoked after the Gujarat high court granted a stay on his conviction in an illegal mining case.
Trivedi issued a fresh order on Wednesday, revoking Barad’s suspension and reinstating him as the Talala constituency MLA.
Speaking to TOI, Trivedi said, “I had suspended him (Barad) on the basis of an opinion from the legal department. The legal department had said that an MLA or MP is liable for automatic suspension if he or she is sentenced to more than two years in jail and does not get a stay on the order.”
Trivedi added, “However, now the high court has granted a stay on his conviction and he made a representation before me with the necessary documentation. After taking legal advice from the advocate general, I have cancelled the earlier order and issued a fresh order, reinstating him.’’ Barad was disqualified by the speaker on March 5 after he was convicted on March 1, to imprisonment for two years and nine months by a lower court, in a limestone theft case that dates back further than a decade.
Barad challenged the declaration of a byelection for his constituency by the Election Commission of India before the Gujarat high court. However, a division bench of the high court had rejected his plea, against which he approached the apex court. Two MLAs (one BJP and one independent) are still disqualified and their matters are before courts of law.