Odisha

Jogesh Singh To Continue As Congress MLA Until Further Orders: SC

By
OB Bureau

Bhubaneswar: The Supreme Court on Friday maintained status quo on its stay order and allowed Sundergarh Congress MLA Jogesh Singh to continue as the Member of the Legislative Assembly until further orders.

The directive of the apex court came while hearing petition filed by Sahadeb Xaxa and Ajay Patel.

The court, however, issued notice to Singh to reply to the counter filed by Xaxa and Patel on submission of false and fabricated caste certificate with a declaration that he belongs to the ‘Bhuyan’ tribe in the affidavit during filing of nomination papers as a Congress candidate for Sundargarh Assembly constituency in 2014.

It may be recalled that the apex court on February 13 this year had stayed the order of the Orissa High Court and allowed Singh to continue as the Member of the Legislative Assembly until further orders.

A division bench of the apex court, comprising Justice AK Sikri and Ashok Bhusan, had issued the interim order after hearing the counter from former Union Minister and senior lawyer Kapil Sibal and senior lawyer of Orissa High Court Pitambar Acharya on behalf of Singh.

With this order, Singh would continue as the MLA of Sundargarh Assembly constituency which is reserved for the Scheduled Caste candidate.

“The High Court had declared the election of Jogesh Singh as null and void citing unavailability of evidence in support of his scheduled tribe (ST) caste status in his affidavit. But the division bench of the apex court nullified the order while terming the judgment as unlawful and issued an interim stay,” Acharya had told mediapersons.

The Orissa High Court on January 30 had declared the election of Singh as Congress MLA Jogesh Singh of Sundargarh Constituency null and void in response to two separate writ petitions filed by Sahadeb Xaxa, the BJP candidate who was contesting for Sundargarh Reserve Assembly seat in the Assembly elections in 2014, and Ajay Patel, a voter.

The duo in their petitions had alleged that Singh had submitted false and fabricated caste certificate with a declaration that he belongs to the ‘Bhuyan’ tribe.

Challenging the High Court order, Singh had moved the Supreme Court. 

OB Bureau

Recent Posts

Attack On Dharmasala MLA In Odisha: BJD, BJP Trade Charges Over Police Action

Jajpur: Ruling BJP and Opposition BJD were engaged in trading charges against each other on…

November 24, 2024

After Jaiswal-Kohli-Bumrah Heroics, Can India Beat Australia By Record Margin In 1st Test?

Perth: It was the perfect day of Test cricket for Team India. The visiting team…

November 24, 2024

Youth Beats Old Mother To Death In Odisha’s Angul

Angul: A youth allegedly beat his old mother to death following an argument over a…

November 24, 2024

Virat Kohli Thanks Anushka After Breaking Century Drought [Watch]; Check His Feats

Perth: He hadn’t scored a Test century for 16 months. His previous 15 Test knocks…

November 24, 2024

BJD’s Minority Cell Stages Protest Against Waqf Bill In Bhubaneswar

Bhubaneswar: The members of BJD's minority cell staged a demonstration in front of Raj Bhavan…

November 24, 2024

System Over Bay Of Bengal To Trigger Rain In Odisha, Push Up Night Temp By 2-4°C

Bhubaneswar: Dense fog reduced visibility in Odisha's Rourkela while moderate fog engulfed Koraput, Bhawanipatna and…

November 24, 2024

IPL Auction: Rishabh Pant Sold At Record Rs 27 Cr After Shreyas Iyer Fetches Rs 26.75 Cr

Mumbai: Shreyas Iyer may be out of the Indian team currently, but the dashing right-handed…

November 24, 2024

What Did PM Narendra Modi Take From Odisha As Gift During 3-Nation Visit?

Bhubaneswar: A rare and exquisitely crafted Filigree boat made of pure silver from Odisha was…

November 24, 2024