By Marcellus D’Souza

Apr 22: The Supreme Court (SC) today issued notice to the Speaker of the Goa Assembly and 10 MLAs who had joined the BJP in 2017.

In March 2022, the then Goa Congress chief Girish Chodankar had approached the SC challenging the Bombay High Court (HC) dismissing petitions challenging the dismissal of 10 Cong MLAs who joined BJP to form the BJP government of Pramod Sawant in 2017.

The petition seeking relief from the Apex Court was filed on February 24, 2022 after the Bombay HC upheld the Order of the Speaker of the Goa Legislature Assembly dismissing the petition against the 10 Congress MLAs.

Girish Chodankar plea challenged the switchover of 10 MLAs in July 2019 and by Sudin Dhavalikar, Maharashtra Gomantak Party MLA who had challenged the switchover 2 MLAs, who decided to join the BJP government and extend their unconditional support to strengthen the government in 2019.

The plea in the SC observed, “The decision of the Speaker upheld by the HC of Bombay at Goa was at the teeth of the settled principals of the merger of a political party”.

The then Goa Congress chief Girish Chodankar’s petition had posed the SC with three immense important questions. Weather the merger of an original party is a necessary precondition for the members of a legislature party to claim merger of the legislature party. Weather the protection granted under Para 4(1) of Schedule X can be granted to members of the legislature party in the absence of the merger of the political party and whether the legislature party can initiate and conclude the merger of the political party without any reference to and/or the role of the political party.

It may be recalled in 2019 two-thirds numbering 10 MLAs of the Congress broke away to merge with the ruling BJP.

The group, led by Leader of Opposition Chandrakant Kavlekar, met Assembly Speaker Rajesh Patnekar in and gave him a letter, informing him about their breaking away.

The MLAs include Atanasio Monserratte, Jeniffer Monserratte, Francis Silveira, Philip Nery Rodrigues, Cleaofacio Dias, Wilfred D’Sa and Nilkant Halarnkar.

Chief Minister Pramod Sawant, who was present when the group arrived at the Assembly, said the 10 MLAs had merged with the BJP. Chief Minister Pramod Sawant welcomed the MLAs saying, “They had come for development of the state and their constituency. They have joined the BJP unconditionally. Ten Congress MLAs, along with their Opposition Leader, have merged with BJP. Strength of BJP has now risen to 27. They had come for development of the state and their constituency”, said Sawant.
Elaborating on the development then Deputy Speaker of Goa Assembly, Michael Lobo had said, "Ten MLAs of the Congress party have split from the Congress. Speaker Rajesh Patnekar has accepted the resignations of the 10 MLAs, who form two-thirds of the Congress legislative party of 15 MLAs."

With the 10 MLAs changing sides, the strength of the Congress in the House will be down to just five MLAs.

Speaker Rajesh Patnekar had then said, “They came with the resignations and I accepted,” and added the monsoon session of the Assembly will commence as per schedule. “Only their seating arrangement will change,” he had said.

The anti-defection law makes it mandatory that two-thirds of the strength of a party should agree for a ‘merger’. The amendment, which came into force in January 2004, does not recognise a ‘split’ in a legislature party and instead recognises a ‘merger’.