Unconstitutional And Irrational: SC Quashes Indefinite Suspension of 12 BJP MLAs From Maharashtra Assembly

The 12 suspended members are Sanjay Kute, Ashish Shelar, Abhimanyu Pawar, Girish Mahajan, Atul Bhatkhalkar, Parag Alavani, Harish Pimpale, Yogesh Sagar, Jay Kumar Rawat, Narayan Kuche, Ram Satpute and Bunty Bhangdia.

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday quashed the one-year suspension of 12 BJP MLAs from the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly while terming it unconstitutional and arbitrary. The 12 suspended members are Sanjay Kute, Ashish Shelar, Abhimanyu Pawar, Girish Mahajan, Atul Bhatkhalkar, Parag Alavani, Harish Pimpale, Yogesh Sagar, Jay Kumar Rawat, Narayan Kuche, Ram Satpute and Bunty Bhangdia.

Supreme Court quashes one-year suspension from the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly of 12 BJP MLAs while terming it unconstitutional and arbitrary. MLAs were suspended for one year for allegedly misbehaving with the presiding officer. pic.twitter.com/LsXiT9MtNR

— ANI (@ANI) January 28, 2022

For the unversed, these MLAs were suspended for one year for allegedly misbehaving with the presiding officer. They were suspended on July 5 last year from the Assembly after the state government had accused them of misbehaving with presiding officer Bhaskar Jadhav in the Speaker’s chamber.

“In conclusion, we have no hesitation in allowing these writ petitions and the impugned resolution suspending these members beyond the period of the remainder of the concerned Monsoon session held in July 2021 is non-est in the eyes of law, nullity, unconstitutional, substantially illegal, and irrational”, a bench headed by Justice A M Khanwilkar said.

It added that the impugned resolution is thus declared to be ineffective in law in so far as the period beyond the stated session in which the resolution came to be passed. The apex court delivered its verdict on the pleas filed by the 12 BJP MLAs against their one-year suspension.

Reacting to the verdict, former Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis expressed gratitude towards the supreme court. “We welcome & thank the Hon SC for the historic decision of quashing of suspension of our 12 @BJP4Maharashtra MLAs, who were fighting for the cause of OBCs in Maharashtra Legislative Assembly during the monsoon session”, tweeted the BJP leader.

𝐒𝐀𝐓𝐘𝐀𝐌𝐄𝐕𝐀 𝐉𝐀𝐘𝐀𝐓𝐄 !
We welcome & thank the Hon SC for the historic decision of quashing of suspension of our 12 @BJP4Maharashtra MLAs, who were fighting for the cause of OBCs in Maharashtra Legislative Assembly during the monsoon session. #12MLAs #Maharashtra #BJP https://t.co/10ZXurxtya

— Devendra Fadnavis (@Dev_Fadnavis) January 28, 2022

“It was not only a question of 12 MLAs but of more than 50 lakh citizens in these 12 constituencies. Since the beginning, we were saying that it was completely unconstitutional & gross misuse of power to suspend our MLAs for such a long period to create artificial majority & that too for no valid reason & the Hon SC has upheld our stand”, he tweeted.

Echoing similar remarks, former Union minister Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore came down heavily on the Uddhav Thackeray-led Maharashtra government and said, “Hon. Supreme Court has quashed the ‘UNCONSTITUTIONAL & arbitrary’ suspension of BJP MLAs from the Maharashtra assembly. The MVA govt’s blatant disregard for the constitution & democratic principles is not new.”