Filed SLP to avoid contradiction between decisions of Speaker and court: CP Joshi

Rajasthan Assembly Speaker CP Joshi on Wednesday said that he has filed Special Leave Petition (SLP) in Supreme Court to avoid contradiction between decisions of Speaker and court.

"My effort was to respect the Rajasthan High Court's order that's why I extended hearing for July 21 when the court asked. Yesterday, the court asked me to wait till July 24 and I respected that too. Since the matter is in court, the Speaker can not proceed further. I have filed a Special Leave Petition in Supreme Court to avoid contradiction between decisions of Speaker and court," CP Joshi told .

Earlier in the day, Joshi approached the Supreme Court against the interim order passed by the Rajasthan High Court on the petition filed by former Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot and MLAs from his camp against the disqualification notices issued against them.

Joshi, in his Special Leave Petition (SLP), said that the impugned interim order has interdicted and restrained the Speaker from calling of replies and conducting hearing of the disqualification proceedings pending against the respondents till July 24. The petitioner also sought an urgent hearing on the SLP in the interest of justice.

Joshi said the rebel Congress MLAs were "wanting to circumvent the due process".

"When the notices were issued, they (rebel Congress MLAs) should have replied to the notice and could have approached the court if they felt the action taken was not satisfactory. They want to circumvent the process which is not good for democracy," Joshi said.

"In 1992, a Constitution bench ruled that the Speaker has the power regarding disqualification. Chief whip of Congress party filed a petition before me and I issued show-cause notices to MLAs concerned. After that, the matter was taken to court," he added.

The Rajasthan High Court had on Tuesday asked the Speaker to defer the proceedings pending before him on the disqualification notices issued to Pilot and other MLAs of his faction and put off the verdict on the matter to till July 24.

Rajasthan Congress is in turmoil after simmering differences between Pilot and Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot came out in the open. Pilot was sacked from the posts of Rajasthan Deputy Chief Minister and state PCC president on July 14.

Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot has blamed the BJP for attempting to destabilise the state government by poaching MLAs.

( With inputs from ANI )