New Delhi, August 12
The suspended Punjab Public Service Commission (PPSC) Chairman, Ravinder Pal Singh Sidhu, expressed his desire to resign from the post on his own before the Supreme Court here.
Mr K.T.S. Tulsi, counsel for Sidhu, said he told the Supreme Court Bench, comprising Justice S. Rajendra Babu, Justice Ruma Pal and Justice P.V. Reddi, today that his client wanted to resign from the post on his own today itself to “save the dignity of the constitutional post”.
“The Supreme Court wanted that an affidavit in this regard be filed before it by next Monday, when the case would come up for hearing again,” Mr Tulsi told The Tribune.
“He (Sidhu) would hand over his resignation to Punjab Governor J.F.R. Jacob today and subsequently an affidavit in this regard will be filed before the apex court,” Mr Tulsi said.
Meanwhile, the apex court has issued notice to Sidhu on a presidential reference seeking his removal from the constitutional post due to his alleged involvement in a huge recruitment scam. The notice was issued by the court after hearing Solicitor-General Harish Salve.
The President had forwarded to the Supreme Court a reference from Punjab Governor J.F.R. Jacob levelling seven allegations of misconduct and malpractices and seeking his removal by taking action under Article 317(1) of the Constitution.
The presidential reference signed by the then President K.R. Narayanan said: “In exercise of the powers conferred upon me by Article 317(1) of the Constitution, I hereby refer to the Supreme Court of India for inquiry and report in accordance with the procedure prescribed under Article 145 of the Constitution.”
Mr Sidhu’s term as PPSC Chairman ends on September 13. He was suspended by the Punjab Governor on June 5, pending the reference to the Supreme Court.
The resignation, if it materialises, will have no effect on the criminal cases pending against him.
