Jharkhand Assembly Speaker Rabindra Nath Mahato on Monday rejected BJP leader Babulal Marandi demanding the Speaker to defer hearing of split and merger issue of JVM under anti-defection law on the ground that he has already approached Jharkhand High Court against decision of the speaker to set-up court to hear this case.

The speaker fixed December 17 as the next date of hearing and directed Marandi besides MLA Bandhu Tirkey and Pradeep Yadav to file their reply to satisfy the tribunal that due process of law was followed in the split and merger of the JVM in the BJP and the Congress.

Senior lawyer RN Sahay who appeared on behalf of Marandi said that his client can’t file his response before the tribunal since he has already approached Jharkhand High Court and a hearing is awaited.

Sahay further said that in case his client submits his response for hearing; the High Court may turn down Marandi’s petition on the ground that the tribunal is already hearing this matter.

The Speaker asked whether the High Court has fixed any date for hearing and whether Marandi has any written court order prohibiting tribunal to hear this case. When Marandi’s lawyer answered in negative, the speaker observed that Marandi’s time petition can’t be accepted on flimsy grounds.  

In February Marandi returned to the BJP fold, the party he had left 14 years back. He had formed the JVM after quitting the BJP and contested subsequent assembly and parliamentary elections.

In the last Assembly election Marandi, Yadav and Tirkey were elected as MLA from the JVM (P) fold. Both Yadav and Tirkey were opposed to merger in the BJP. They wanted to merge the party with the Congress. Marandi expelled them from the party one by one thus he remained the lone MLA of the party. It was a well calculated move to avoid any hindrance in the smooth division of the legislative fold of the party, which was necessary to complete the merger process.

Later on, Yadav and Tirkey claimed they represent the original JVM and announced merger of the JVM in the Congress.

But the ECI rejected their claim for merger in the Congress and declared them as independent. In the meantime, the BJP declared Marandi as leader of opposition. But the Assembly Speaker declined to recognize him as LoP, while raising question over legality of merger of the JVM in the BJP.

The office of the Speaker later on sent them notices. But the Speaker found their reply unsatisfactory and decided to set-up the court for hearing.