Former JVM legislators who had switched to the BJP post Assembly polls in 2015, explained provisions of the 10th schedule before the Speaker Court suggesting that strength of legislative party inside the House is what matters, and nothing else.

Daltonganj MLA Alok Kumar Chaurasia on Monday presenting his arguments before the tribunal hearing the case since the alleged defection took place said that the case be dismissed in the lights of Guwahati High Court.

“10th schedule of the Constitution dealing with anti-defection cases talks only about the number of MLAs inside the House. If the number of MLAs changing their party is two-third of the entire strength of the party in the House the defection case does not arise. This is what happened in this case. Six out of eight former JVM MLAs merged themselves into the BJP.

We have argued before the court to dismiss the matter since the Gauhati High Court while hearing to similar case had ruled that such mergers are legitimate,” said a senior Assembly official present during the court proceeding quoting the JVM lawyer.

With the submission of Alok Chaurasia only arguments from Janki Prasad Yadav is remaining before the tribunal. “Speaker Dinesh Oraon has fixed December 7 as next date when he would listen to the arguments from last man who had crossed over. Thereafter I would need one date to reply to the new points raised by the defense which was not the part of my arguments. Then the case would be open to deliver appropriate judgment,” said RN Sahay, advocate of the JVM.

The advocates from the MLAs have been stressing that the matter a perfect case of merger of a party into another party while rejecting the claims of the JVM which has been stating that six of the legislators elected on its tickets during the 2014 polls but went on shifting their loyalties to the BJP that came to power early in 2015 against the provisions into the law.

The respondents have been pressing that the JVM at that time and even before was passing through turbulences. Even during the third Vidhan Sabha, seven of their sitting MLAs had quit the party while one got expelled from the House.

The party was being run through dictatorship thus the merger was done as per the wishes of the people and party workers.