top of page
Judge Gavel
Search
Writer's pictureLegal Soch Foundation
2 min read

SC Stays HC Ruling on Himachal MLAs’ Parliamentary Secretary Disqualification

The Supreme Court on Friday stayed the Himachal Pradesh High Court’s direction to initiate disqualification proceedings against Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs) appointed as Parliamentary Secretaries. A bench led by Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna and Justice PV Sanjay Kumar issued notice on a Special Leave Petition filed by the State of Himachal Pradesh challenging the High Court’s November 12 judgment, which struck down the Himachal Pradesh Parliamentary Secretaries (Appointment, Salaries, Allowances, Powers, Privileges, and Amenities) Act, 2006.


The High Court had held that the appointments violated constitutional provisions, deeming them equivalent to "Offices of Profit" under Article 164(1-A). It also nullified Section 3(d) of the Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly Members (Removal of Disqualifications) Act, 1971, which provided immunity to such appointments.


The Supreme Court granted respondents two weeks to file counter-affidavits, followed by two weeks for the State to submit its rejoinder. Meanwhile, the Court ordered a status quo on further disqualification proceedings.


During the hearing, Senior Advocates Kapil Sibal and Dr. Abhishek Manu Singhvi, representing the State, argued that similar laws in Chhattisgarh and West Bengal are under consideration by the Supreme Court. Respondent counsel Senior Advocate Maninder Singh highlighted the Apex Court’s precedent in State of Manipur v. Surjakumar Okram, which struck down a comparable law.


CJI Khanna noted the absence of detailed reasoning in the High Court’s judgment regarding the invalidation of protections against disqualification. The bench observed that MLAs should not be appointed as Parliamentary Secretaries during the interim period.


The High Court had previously deemed the appointments unconstitutional for breaching mandatory limits on cabinet size under Article 164(1-A), equating Parliamentary Secretaries’ roles to those of ministers, including access to government files and decision-making powers.


The matter will be heard next after the exchange of pleadings.


Case Title:

State of Himachal Pradesh & Anr. v. Kalpana Devi & Ors.




Recent Posts

See All
bottom of page