New Delhi, July 25
Taking note of the allegations of “mala fide” in the midnight dissolution of the Bihar Assembly, levelled by four former MLAs in a writ petition, the Supreme Court today issued notices to the Centre and the Bihar Governor seeking their replies within three weeks, saying “the matter calls for hearing”.
After perusing three reports of the Governor, Mr Buta Singh, sent on March 6, April 27 and May 21, a day before the dissolution order was proclaimed by the President from Moscow at 3.30 am (local time) and other relevant documents, a Bench of Chief Justice R.C. Lahoti, Mr Justice C.K. Thakkar and Mr Justice P.K. Balasubramayan said: “In our opinion a case is made out against the respondents for issuing notice.”
A vacation Bench on June 10 had deferred hearing of the writ petition of the four former MLAs — Mr Rameshwar Prasad Chaurasia (BJP), Mr Anil Kumar (breakaway LJP), Mr Ram Pervesh Rai (JDU) and Mr Kishore Kumar (Independent) — after their petition was segregated from a bunch of public interest litigation (PIL) on the issue, as the legislators were the affected parties of the dissolution order.
While examining the documents placed on record by Union Government counsel Gopal Subramaniam, the Bench asked certain specific questions from him and Attorney-General Milon Banerjee about the timings of sending the Cabinet decision to Moscow to the President, who was on a visit to Russia, his assent to it and whether only the dissolution notification was sent to him or any other material was placed before him for his personal satisfaction.
When the court asked petitioner’s counsel, former Attorney-General Soli J. Sorabjee whether notice was required to be issued to the Governor, which normally is not done considering his position as a constitutional head in the state, Mr Sorabjee said: “It has to be issued on legal mala fide (on the part of Governor)”
Mr Sorabjee said mala fide was writ large in the whole action of the Governor and the Union Government in showing “tearing hurry” in getting the dissolution notification issued at a midnight decision by the Cabinet even when the President was out of the country.
