The Supreme Court on Monday stayed the disqualification proceedings against the three dissident AIADMK MLAs for indulging in anti-party activities and supporting the TTV Dhinakaran camp.
A Bench led by Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi also issued notice to the Assembly Speaker. The AIADMK MLAs had approached the apex court to restrain the Speaker from acting on a disqualification notice for anti-party activities issued in his name, in view of his endorsement of T T V Dhinakaran’s leadership. He claimed the Speaker could have acted in “partisan and biased manner contrary to the high position” because a motion for his own removal moved by DMK on April 30 was pending.
The Assembly Speaker had on April 29 issued a notice to three “dissident” AIADMK MLAs E. Rathinasabapathy, V.T. Kalaiselvan, and V.T. Prabhu for supporting Dhinakaran, who along with V K Sasikala floated their own outfit following the death of Jayalalithaa on December 5, 2016. The petitioner contended that the action by the Speaker was taken in an arbitrary manner without jurisdiction and actuated with malice.
—India Legal Bureau