The attempts made by six former JVM legislators who had gone on joining the BJP in 2015 to hold Babulal Marandi for contempt could not materialise when Speaker Dinesh Oraon hearing the anti-defection case rejected their pleas.
The MlAs citing Marandi submitting the letter to Governor Droupadi Murmu claiming it as a proof of horse trading behind their switching loyalties had pleaded that the JVM supremo had in the process demeaned the Speaker’s tribunal.
“The Speaker heard both the parties and lawyers and dismissed all the six petitions filed separately by the MlAs. Now, the hearing in the case would continue on whether the defection that took place was violation of the 10th schedule of the Constitution or not,” said an official present during the hearing.
The criminal contempt petitions were filed during the previous hearing soon after Marandi made the said letter public which claimed that the legislators were paid for joining the BJP after the Assembly polls.
The legislators namely Randhir Singh, Amar Kumar Bauri, Ganesh Ganjhu, Janaki Prasad Yadav, Navin Jaiswal and Alok Chaurasia approached the tribunal pleading first to decide the contempt case claiming the act of Marandi had influenced hearing and thus denigrated it.
“We made submissions that the case before the tribunal is to be decided in the light of the 10th Schedule whereas the letter brought out in open was to disqualify the MlAs for accepting money in lieu of posts. The Governor under the Constitutional provisions in place is entitled to disqualify such legislators and Babulal Marandi’s plea to her was only that. It has nothing to do with anti-defection case being heard here,” maintained JVM advocate RN Sahay after the hearing on Friday.
He further informed that Speaker Dinesh Oraon fixing next date on August 10 and made it clear that the arguments continuing in the case would take place. “I also urged him for conducting day to day hearing of the matter so that the case is decided at the earliest. I need 1 or 2 dates to conclude my arguments. The Speaker also urged to the defense lawyers, six in numbers, to argue in collective manner and not take separate times to repeat themselves since all the six have more or less similar things to say,” said Sahay.