Merger with Congress: BSP legislators seek transfer of case to SC

JAIPUR: The six legislators, whose merger into Congress from BSP has been challenged before the Rajasthan High Court, have petitioned the Supreme Court to transfer the matter to itself, as it was already hearing appeals against a similar question of law decided by the Punjab High Court in 1997 and the Gauhati High Court in 2014.
As per the BSP MLAs, the question of law raised before the Rajasthan, Punjab and Gauhati high courts was: “Whether, for the purposes of para 4 of the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution, the original political party needs to be merged, apart from the merger of the legislature party?”
In Rajasthan, all six BSP MLAs merged into Congress with the approval from the Speaker, but their party and a BJP MLA challenged it saying that the merger at the state level was unconstitutional as the original political party, the BSP led by Mayawati at the national level, has not merged into Congress.
In the 2014 case of Nagaland assembly Speaker versus Imtilemba Sangtam, the Gauhati HC ruled that for the merger of a legislature party there was no need for the merger of its political party, the BSP legislators have said in their transfer petition filed before the SC on Saturday.
The 2014 judgment was challenged through a special leave petition (SLP) titled Mithou Krose versus Imtilemba Sangtam, which was currently being heard by the apex court.Pleading SC to tag Nagaland and Rajasthan assemblies’ cases together for hearing by a constitutional bench, the six MLAs have sought a stay on the proceedings in the Rajasthan High Court, which is hearing petitions separately moved by BJP MLA Madan Dilawar and the BSP for their disqualification. A single bench of the high court has asked the MLAs to file their replies on these petitions by August 11.
Dilawar and BSP had sought a stay on the BSP-Congress merger until their petitions are finally decided by the high court, but the single bench passed no order on it. Following an appeal by Dilawar and BSP, a division bench headed by Chief Justice Indrajit Mahanty passed an interim order on August 6, saying “we remain confident” that the single bench will “hear and dispose of the stay applications” on August 11.
The merger of the six BSP MLAs in September 2019 helped the ruling Congress to maintain majority in the Rajasthan assembly. The high court decision on the merger would have a bearing on the Ashok Gehlot-led state government facing crisis due to revolt by sacked deputy CM Sachin Pilot.