Bengal Assembly Speaker to hear Mukul Roy disqualification case again in May

Adhikari then moved a disqualification petition against him before the Speaker under the anti-defection law.In February this year, the Speaker in an order dismissed the petition.Adhikari then challenged the order in the high court.

The next hearing of the Mukul Roy disqualification case as an MLA will be held in the West Bengal Assembly in the first week of May, an official said on Thursday.

The Calcutta High Court on April 11 set aside Speaker Biman Banerjee's order dismissing a petition by Leader of the Opposition Suvendu Adhikari which sought disqualification of Trinamool Congress lawmaker Mukul Roy as a member of the House on the ground of defection and restored the matter for fresh consideration.

The Speaker held the first hearing on April 22.

During the second hearing held on Thursday at the Speaker's chamber, Roy's lawyers claimed that he is still with the BJP, and the documents and newspaper clippings produced by Adhikari were fake, the Assembly official said.

''The lawyers of Adhikari, however, asserted that all the documents were genuine. The Speaker might again call both the parties for further verification of the documents on May 6,'' he said.

Roy, a former BJP national vice-president, had defected to the ruling TMC in June 2021 after winning the Assembly election on a BJP ticket. Adhikari then moved a disqualification petition against him before the Speaker under the anti-defection law.

In February this year, the Speaker in an order dismissed the petition.

Adhikari then challenged the order in the high court. PTI PNT NN NN