A single Bench of Justice Kh. Nobin Singh of the Manipur High Court on Friday heard the disqualification petitions filed against seven ‘defected’ Congress MLAs and issued a notification saying the order would be pronounced on June 8.
Senior advocate and Congress leader Kapil Sibal led the team of advocates representing party applicants. Kh. Tarunkumar senior advocate, appeared for Assembly Speaker Yumnam Khemchand and senior advocate H.S.Paonam led the team for the seven MLAs.
The Congress is seeking their disqualification or a ban on entry into the Assembly. It says they had “joined” the BJP although they were elected in the 2017 Assembly polls on the Congress ticket.
The Speaker’s tribunal disqualified Forest Minister T. Shyamkumar on March 28 after a court order. He joined the BJP even before he was sworn in as a member of the Assembly.
The 59 elected members shall vote for the lone Rayja Sabha member on June 19. The BJP and its allies are fielding the titular king of Manipur Leishemba Sanaajaoba and the Congress T. Mangibabu, a former MLA. The voting by the seven MLAs will be crucial in the numbers game.