Lok Sabha Elections: Political future of Naba Kumar Sarania hangs in balance

Staff Reporter

Guwahati: The Gauhati High Court set aside the March 27, 2024, order by a single judge, which stayed the Speaking Order of the state government passed on January 12, 2024, raising a question mark on Naba Kumar Sarania's caste and posing a barrier to his contesting the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.

The interim order by the single judge, staying the speaking order by the State Level Scrutiny Committee (SLSC), allowed Sarania to contest in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls.

The latest oral order issued on Wednesday by the two-judge bench of Chief Justice Vijay Bishnoi and Justice Suman Shyam ruled that the impugned order passed by the single judge cannot be sustained and set it aside.

During the hearing, the bench observed that while it is true that the respondent, Naba Kumar Sarania, has been a Member of Parliament for two terms and that he is also contemplating contesting in the upcoming Parliamentary Elections, this fact itself could not be termed a valid ground for granting interim relief to him as it amounted to granting the final relief while the writ petition is still pending adjudication.

It was stated that if Sarania is allowed to contest the ensuing parliamentary elections on the strength of an interim order passed by the court, it may lead to further chaos and complications in case the writ petition is decided against him. Further, it ruled that such recourse would also be 'adverse to the public interest at large.'

It should be mentioned here that the single judge suspended the order dated January 12, 2024, passed by the SLSC, and also suspended the consequential order dated January 20, 2024, passed by the state government, cancelling the ST(P) certificate issued in favour of Naba Kumar Sarania.

The two-judge bench also said that the order dated January 20, 2024, is not under challenge, and the main challenge in the writ petition is the order dated January 12, 2024. In their opinion, suspension of the orders dated January 12, 2024, and January 20, 2024 by an interim order virtually amounted to granting final relief to respondent No. 1 (Naba Kumar Sarania) without adjudication of the dispute on merits.

Moreover, the bench said that at this stage they were not going into the question of inclusion of the "Sarania Kachari" community in the tribal list since this may have some bearing on the merits of the case and, therefore, left it open for the single judge to adjudicate upon the question.

However, looking at the urgency of the matter, the bench directed the Registry to list the writ petition (WA/110/2024) filed by Sarania before the learned single judge for final disposal on April 5, 2024. The court also requested that the single judge decide the writ petition expeditiously while hearing it on a day-to-day basis, if required.

 Also Read: Bodoland Janajati Suraksha Mancha expresses resentment over Gauhati High Court verdict on Naba Sarania (sentinelassam.com)

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