W.P.(C) 6352 of 2021 Page 1 of 15

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IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI

Date of Decision:- 09.07.2021

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W.P.(C) 6352/2021

CHIRAG PASWAN & ANR.

..... Petitioners

Through:

Mr. A.K. Bajpai, Mr. Udit Grover,

Advs. with Mr. Nitin Bajpai and Mr. Diwaker

Kumar, Advs.

Versus

LOK SABHA SECRETARY AND ORS

..... Respondents

Through

Mr. Tushar Mehta, Sr. Adv. SG with

Mr. Chetan Sharma, ASG with Mr. Ajay Digpaul,

CGSC and Mr. Kamal R. Digpaul, Adv. for R-

9/UOI.

Mr. Rajshekhar Rao, Senior Advocate, Ms. Mansi

Sood, Mr. Areeb Amanullah, Advocates for

Respondent Nos. 1 (Secretary General, Lok Sabha)

and 8 (Hon’ble Speaker).

CORAM:

HON’BLE MS. JUSTICE REKHA PALLI

REKHA PALLI, J (ORAL)

CM APPL.20002-03/2021 (Exemptions)

1. Exemptions allowed, subject to all just exceptions and with the

condition that the petitioner shall file the duly attested affidavit(s) within two

weeks of resumption of regular functioning of the Court.

2. The applications stand disposed of.

2021:DHC:2008

W.P.(C) 6352 of 2021 Page 2 of 15

W.P.(C) 6352/2021 & CM APPL. 20001/2021 (stay)

3. The present petition seeks the following reliefs:

“I.

To allow the cost of the writ petition.”

4. The petitioner no.1 is the incumbent Member of Parliament (MP) for

the Lok Sabha constituency of Jamui, Bihar and is also a member of

petitioner no.2, a political party named Lok Janshakti party, which was

registered with the Election Commission of India on 31.01.2001 and allotted

the symbol of ‘Bungalow’ in the year 2005. It is the petitioner’s case that he

was unanimously appointed as the National President of petitioner no.2 for a

period of 5 years w.e.f. 05.11.2019 in accordance with the constitution of the

petitioner no.2 party, which fact was duly communicated to the respondent

no.2/the Election Commission of India on 09.11.2019. Other than petitioner

no.1, the current and 17^th Lok Sabha has five other MPs from the petitioner

no.2 political party – all of whom have been arrayed as respondent nos. 3 to 7

in the instant petition. The primary grievance of the petitioners is in respect

of the decision contained in the Circular dated 14.06.2021 issued by the

respondent no.2/ Lok Sabha Secretariat which announced that the party

2021:DHC:2008

W.P.(C) 6352 of 2021 Page 3 of 15

position in the 17^th Lok Sabha stood revised w.e.f. 13.06.2021 and that

respondent no.3/Mr Pashupati Kumar Paras, the incumbent MP from the Lok

Sabha constituency of Hajipur, Bihar was substituted as the party leader of

the petitioner no.2 party in the 17^th Lok Sabha, in place of petitioner no.1.

5.

By way of this writ, the petitioners claim that the substitution of party

leadership of petitioner no.2 party in the Lok Sabha was made by the

respondent no.1 on 14.06.2021 at the sole behest of five errant MPs of the

petitioner no. 2 party, being respondent nos. 3 to 7, without directly

conferring with the petitioner no.2 at all. The petitioner no.1 also claims that

the rebelling MPs were then removed from the petitioner no.2 party by its

National Executive w.e.f. 15.06.2021, and no longer represented the party in

the Lok Sabha. The petitioner no.1 is aggrieved that his substitution as the

party Leader of the petitioner no.2 party in the 17^th Lok Sabha was effected

by the Hon’ble Speaker without even formally confirming whether such

substitution had been carried out by the party.

6. Mr. Bajpai, learned counsel for the petitioner submits that even though

the petitioner no.1 was the recognized National President of the petitioner

no.2 party and its Party Leader in the Lok Sabha,