SC Sends TMC MLA Disqualification Plea to Calcutta HC

• Supreme Court directs Chattopadhyay to approach Calcutta High Court.
• High Court Chief Justice asked to assign the matter to a division bench.
• Disqualification petitions against 10 rebel TMC MLAs were filed on July 8.
• Dispute follows a split within the Trinamool Congress after the Assembly election.

GG News Bureau
New Delhi, 5th Nov: The TMC disqualification plea filed by party leader Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay over alleged defection by rebel Trinamool Congress MLAs will now be taken up by the Calcutta High Court after the Supreme Court declined to entertain his petition on Thursday.

A bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi disposed of Chattopadhyay’s plea and granted him liberty to approach the High Court. It also requested the Calcutta High Court Chief Justice to place the matter before a division bench for urgent consideration and expeditious disposal.

At the outset, the Supreme Court noted that the Speaker was expected to decide the disqualification petitions filed on July 8 within three months. Chattopadhyay’s counsel told the bench that nearly five months had passed without a decision.

Justice Bagchi acknowledged the concern but cautioned against bypassing the regular judicial process, observing, “You cannot litigate to jump the queue.”

The counsel urged the Supreme Court to ensure that the matter was heard by a division bench to avoid another round of intra-court appeals. He also pointed out that the Calcutta High Court was on a break until November 11.

The bench, however, said that not every petition could be brought directly before the Supreme Court merely because it had passed an earlier order concerning West Bengal.

The disqualification petitions were filed against 10 TMC MLAs on July 8 over their alleged defection after contesting the Assembly elections on a party ticket. Those named include Ritabrata Banerjee, Firhad Hakim, Arup Roy, Sandipan Saha, Akhruzzaman Ansari, Shiuli Saha, Sabina Yasmin, Biplab Mitra, Javed Khan and Rathin Ghosh.

The dispute has emerged amid a split within the TMC following its defeat to the Bharatiya Janata Party in the Assembly elections.

Chattopadhyay had been nominated by the Mamata Banerjee-led faction as its Leader of Opposition. However, Assembly Speaker Rathindra Bose recognised rebel MLA Ritabrata Banerjee for the post and appointed another rebel MLA as Chief Whip.

Earlier, on June 18, the Calcutta High Court had declined to grant interim relief in Chattopadhyay’s challenge to the Speaker’s decision to appoint Ritabrata Banerjee as Leader of Opposition.

The Supreme Court’s latest order leaves the disqualification dispute before the Calcutta High Court for further consideration.