JVM (P) chief Babulal Marandi has moved the Jharkhand high court, challenging the assembly speaker’s verdict that validated the merger of the party’s six MLAs into the BJP.

Assembly speaker Dinesh Oraon on February 20 had ruled that the merger of six JVM (P) MLAs into the BJP fold was valid, dismissing the two anti-defection cases lodged against the lawmakers in 2015.

Out of eight JVM (P) MLAs, Navin Jaiswal (Hatia), Ashok Chourasia (Daltonganj), Amar Kumar Bauri (Chandankyari), Janki Yadav (Barkattha), Randhir Singh (Sarath) and Ganesh Ganjhu (Simaria) had faced anti-defection charges for embracing the BJP a month after winning 2014 elections on JVM (P) tickets. Marandi and JVM(P)’s legislative party leader Pradeep Yadav had lodged separate cases in the speaker’s court for disqualifying the MLAs.

“Marandi and Yadav both have now filed separate writ petitions in the high court for quashing the speaker’s verdict and disqualifying the six MLAs,” said advocate RN Sahay, representing the duo.

They submitted that the legislators’ move to join the BJP could not be termed as a merger under the provisions of the tenth schedule of the constitution.

The six MLAs had contended that it was not a defection but a merger of the JVM (P) into the BJP as over two-third MLAs of the JVM (P) had joined the BJP.

First Published: Mar 14, 2019 12:20 IST