Delhi HC Sets Aside Disqualification Of 20 AAP MLAs 

New Delhi: In a major relief to the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), the Delhi High Court today set aside the disqualification of its 20 MLAs in the office-of-profit case. A bench of justices Sanjiv Khanna and Chander Shekhar said that the Centre's notification disqualifying the AAP MLAs was bad in law and remanded their plea back to the Election Commission which will hear it afresh.

Terming the Election Commission's recommendation on disqualification as "vitiated", the bench said that there was violation of natural justice and no oral hearing was given to the MLAs before disqualifying them as legislators of the Delhi Assembly. "Opinion of Election Commission of India (given to the President of India) dated January 19, 2018, is vitiated and bad in law for failure to comply with principles of natural justice," the court said.

"It is a victory of truth," Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal today said after the Delhi High Court set aside the Centre's notification disqualifying 20 AAP MLAs in an office of profit case. Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia too welcomed the order as he joined the AAP legislators in thumping tables in the Delhi Assembly during its ongoing Budget session. The MLAs shouted "Bharat Mata Ki Jai" in the Assembly after the order.

"It is a victory of truth. The elected representatives were wrongfully disqualified. The high court has given justice to the people of Delhi. It is their victory. Congratulations to the people of Delhi," Kejriwal tweeted. In a major relief to the Aam Aadmi Party, the high court today sets aside the Election Commission's recommendation and the subsequent Centre's notification disqualifying 20 of its MLAs in the office of profit case.

A bench of justices Sanjiv Khanna and Chander Shekhar said that the notification disqualifying the MLAs was bad in law and remanded their plea back to the EC which will hear it afresh. (PTI)