Plea in HC seeks to bar J&K's MPs from sitting in Parliament

New Delhi, Jan 31 (IANS) A petition has been filed in the Delhi High Court seeking a bar on ten MPs from the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir from entering the Parliament.The petition came months after the Central government abrogated Article 370 of the Constitution which gave special status to the region, and bifurcated it into two Union Territories - Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.The plea, moved by Professor Abdul Gani Bhat, stated, "The Members of Parliament representing the state in the Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha lost their locus standi to sit in the Indian Parliament (after the revocation of Jammu and Kashmir's special status) and represent the deceased state. Their continuation is illegal and unconstitutional."Listing the names of four Rajya Sabha members and six Lok Sabha members including former Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah, Union Minister Jitendra Singh and Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad, Bhat said that their presence in the Indian Parliament is "immoral, illegal and unconstitutional". The petitioner claimed that the MPs continue to hold their seats in the Parliament, "unabashedly, illegally and immorally" and asserted that they are drawing on the public exchequer and enjoying facilities and perks without "right, logic and reason".The petitioner sought a direction from the court to the Central government to "graciously stop" their entry inside the Parliament forthwith.Bhat further contended that the perks enjoyed by them are draining the public exchequer, thereby causing loss to the citizens of the country. "The pay, perks, and other benefits which they might have received after the disbandment of the state on August 5, 2019, till date be recovered from them," he demanded.
--IANS anb/vd