New Delhi: Expelled Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLA Vinod Kumar Binny on Monday withdrew from the Delhi High Court his plea to be declared as an Independent legislator in view of the legislative assembly being dissolved on November 4.
In his petition, Binny had sought that he be declared as an Independent legislator and also objected to the whips issued by AAP on February 12 and 13 to vote in favour of the party in the House.
His decision to withdraw the plea comes in the wake of dissolution of the Delhi Legislative Assembly as ordered by the Union Cabinet on the recommendation of Lt Governor Najeeb Jung.
The assembly has been in suspended animation for the past eight months after then Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal put in his papers.
Jung had given his recommendation to dissolve the assembly, after BJP, Congress and AAP expressed their inability to form a government.
In the proceedings before the high court, a single-judge bench of Justice Manmohan on February 19 had stayed the operation of Speaker M S Dhir's letter that had said that Binny continued to be a member of AAP despite his expulsion.
Earlier, the Delhi Assembly Speaker in his reply had said he had no power under the law to change the affiliation of expelled the AAP MLA in the house.
The Speaker's office had said the Supreme Court's order to protect Amar Singh and Jaya Prada from disqualification as MPs after their expulsion from Samajwadi Party will not be applicable in Binny's case.
Dhir Speaker's office had also said that Binny, in any case, does not face the danger of disqualification, as he had obeyed the whip on February 12 and moreover, the Assembly was under suspended animation.
The apex court had in 2010 stayed the operation of its verdict in G Vishwanathan case to protect Amar Singh and Jaya Prada from disqualification as MPs after they were expelled by Samajwadi Party.
The apex court in the G Vishwanathan verdict had held that an expelled member continued to be part of the party which set him up as a candidate during elections.
Elected from Laxmi Nagar constituency on AAP ticket, Binny had challenged the view taken by Delhi Assembly Speaker that despite his expulsion, he remained an AAP member and would be bound by a party whip.
The expelled AAP member had termed the view of the Speaker as "grossly illegal, biased and prejudiced" and had accused him of colluding with the party.
The MLA's counsel had also contended that Binny was pressured and compelled to vote in favour of the party.
