New Delhi | The Election Commision (EC) on Tuesday announced that it will hear the final argument of the disqualification of 20 Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLA’s on July 23.
The Commision in a 70-page order dismissed the application for the cross-examination of the petitioner moved by the AAP MLAs. The order stated that “There is no occasion and need for cross-examination of the petitioner as he is not a witness in the present proceedings and the respondents have failed to make out a case for calling any witness.”
The Commission has further stated that the factual matrix which the poll body and High Court has taken cognisance of is drawn on the basis of information which it received from the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (GNTCD).
“Moreover, in order to follow, Principles of Natural Justice in letter and spirit, multiple opportunities were accorded to the Respondents to offer their comments on these documents. After receipt of these documents the Respondents did not deny or challenge any single page from the 2500 pages of documents received from GNCTD,” the order said.
The ECI’s order also said that the prayer by AAP MLAs to call GNCTD Officers for proving government records and documents which GNCTD has submitted to the Commission is “nothing but tactics employed to drag and delay this matter”. The order also mentions the observation of the Delhi High Court, stating that the proceedings before the commission would continue from the stage the error and lapse occurred.
In January 2018 the EC recommended the disqualification of 20 AAP MLAs including Alka Lamba, Adarsh Shastri, Sanjeev Jha, Rajesh Gupta, Kailash Gahlot, Vijendra Garg, Praveen Kumar, Sharad Kumar, Madan Lal, Shiv Charan Goyal, Sarita Singh, Naresh Yadav, Rajesh Rishi, Anil Kumar, Som Dutt, Avtar Singh, Sukhvir Singh Dala, Manoj Kumar, Nitin Tyagi and Jarnail Singh.
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