Rajasthan HC to Deliver on Monday Its Verdict on BSP MLAs' Merger with Congress

The Rajasthan High Court will on Monday deliver its verdict on the petitions filed by BJP MLA Madan Dilawar and the BSP challenging the merger of six MLAs with the Congress.

After hearing the arguments, the single-judge bench of Justice Mahendra Kumar Goyal started dictating its decision on Friday but could not complete it due to the paucity of time. It will resume on Monday.

The petitioners have challenged the merger of six MLAs–Sandeep Yadav, Wajib Ali, Deepchand Kheria, Lakhan Meena, Jogendra Awana and Rajendra Gudha–with the Congress and demanded stay on the execution on the order passed by the speaker. They had contested and won the 2018 assembly elections on BSP tickets and they all defected to the Congress in September 2019.

The MLAs submitted an application for the merger on September 16, 2019 and the Speaker issued an order on September 18, 2019. BJP MLA Madan Dilawar challenged the merger and filed a petition before the Speaker in March this year, which was rejected on July 24.

Dilawar challenged the decision of the Speaker in the high court and demanded a stay on the merger. Similarly, the BSP filed a separate petition against the merger. The single-judge bench of the high court on July 30 issued notices to the Speaker and secretary of the assembly and the six MLAs but did not give a stay on the merger against which Dilawar approached the division bench with an appeal.

The division bench disposed of the appeal and directed the single-judge bench to decide the matter. The merger of BSP MLAs with the ruling Congress was a boost to the Ashok Gehlot-led government as the tally of Congress increased to 107 in the house of 200.