The number of MLAs in the state assembly fell further on Friday as Governor OP Kohli disqualified independent legislator from Morva Hadaf, Bhupendrasinh Khant, for submitting an invalid caste certificate for contesting from the tribal reserved seat.
Assembly speaker Rajendra Trivedi made the announcement about Khant's disqualification as an MLA. "Gujarat governor has disqualified Bhupendrasinh Khant as MLA in an order dated May 2. The governor took the decision after the MLA's caste certificate was found to be invalid," Trivedi told reporters. The Speaker added that the Morva Hadaf seat stood vacant as a result of Khant's disqualification.
Reacting to the development, Khant said that he would approach Supreme Court to challenge the governor's order. Khant's win in the 2017 polls was challenged by the losing BJP candidate Vikramsinh Dindor, who alleged that Khant's caste certificate that he belonged to Scheduled Tribes, was not valid. It was pointed out that Khant's mother Savita belonged to tribal community, but his father VK Khant is from OBC.
Khant's argument that the certificate was valid because he grew up at his maternal grandfather's house after his father abandoned the family long ago, was not accepted.
The scrutiny committee of state's tribal development department had last year found Khant's certificate to be invalid, a decision that was later upheld by the high court.
On April 1, the high court rejected Khant's plea seeking direction to the Election Commission to not pass any order disqualifying him as MLA in view of invalidation of the caste certificate.
Morva Hadaf is the seventh assembly seat that is now vacant in the 182-member House. By-elections to Jamnagar Rural, Manavadar, Unjha, and Dhrangadhra seats, which fell vacant due to defection of Congress MLAs to BJP were held on April 23.
The Talala seat had fallen vacant upon Congress MLA Bhaga Barad's disqualification after his conviction in a case of illegal mining, while Dwarka seat fell vacant last month after high court set aside election of BJP MLA Pabubha Manek for defects in his election nomination form.