A candidate of a political party who is elected to any statutory institutions shall always bear in mind that his political activities and his functions in the institution are regulated and guided by the laws of his party, and his continuance as a member depends on his continued unflinching loyalty to his party, ruled the Kerala High Court on Thursday.
Dismissing a writ appeal filed by K.V. Varghese, former chairperson of the Thiruvalla municipality, against his disqualification by the State Election Commission (SEC), the Division Bench noted that if a member or group of elected members of a political party took a stand contrary to that of the political party and acted against its directions and policies, it amounted to disloyalty.
Congress moved SEC
The Congress had moved the State Election Commission against Mr. Varghese after he refused to step down from the chairmanship on completion of two-and-a-half years in office. A single judge of the High Court had also upheld the decision of the SEC.
The moment an elected member became disloyal to the political party to which he belonged, the inference was that he had voluntarily given up his membership.
It had to be borne in mind that the electorate had exercised their franchise by identifying the candidate as a representative of a political party, or an Independent candidate, or of any other organisations and had voted in his or her favour expecting such candidates to continue as such if elected. It was the duty of an elected candidate to retain the confidence reposed so by his electorate, the court noted.