SC quashes HC order on 5 rebel HJC MLAs

The Supreme Court on Friday quashed the Punjab and Haryana high court order which had restrained five Haryana Janhit Congress MLAs from joining the ruling Congress till the assembly speaker decides on their disqualification.

A bench headed by Justice Altamas Kabir, however, asked the speaker of the Haryana legislative assembly to decide within three months the issue of MLAs' disqualification.

The apex court on January 4 had stayed the December 20, 2011 judgement of the high court on a Special Leave Petition by the Haryana assembly speaker and some of the aggrieved MLAs, questioning the verdict.

The high court had ordered that the five MLAs be treated as unattached members, belonging neither to the Congress nor Haryana Janhit Congress and that they would not hold any office.

The high court had passed the order on Haryana Janhit Congress leader Kuldeep Bishnoi's petition, questioning the Haryana assembly speaker's decision to treat the alleged defection by five of his party MLAs as merger of his entire party with the ruling Congress party.