Office-of-profit issue: Delhi HC reinstates 20 AAP MLAs

Office-of-profit issue: Delhi HC reinstates 20 AAP MLAs

What has happened?

The Delhi High Court on Friday quashed a notification issued by President Ram Nath Kovind disqualifying 20 AAP MLAs for holding offices of profit as Parliamentary Secretaries.

HC Observed

The opinion of the Election Commission of India to the President to disqualify the legislators was “vitiated and bad in law for failure to comply with the principles of natural justice”

Arguments by the Court

EC Failed to give oral hearing to MLAs

The High Court noted that the poll panel failed to give oral hearing and opportunity to address arguments on merits to the AAP MLAs before arriving at its opinion that they held ‘office of profit’.

HC order to EC

What is meant by office of profit held under the government: It remanded the matter back to the Election Commission to first decide the “all important and seminal issue; what is meant by the expression ‘office of profit held under the government’.”

Re-examine the factual matrix: The court told the poll panel to then “re-examine the factual matrix to decide whether the petitioners (MLAs) had incurred disqualification on appointment as Parliamentary Secretaries, without being influenced by the earlier order or observations on the said aspect in this order”.

Controversial clause

• The Delhi government, led by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, appointed the parliamentary secretaries attached to government ministries after coming to power in March 2015.
• However, a constitutional clause prohibits legislators or parliamentarians from holding any position with monetary or other benefits. Known as ‘office of profit’, the clause is aimed at reducing conflict of interest situations for public representatives.
• The government had claimed that the appointments would facilitate a smooth functioning.