In a significant legal intervention, the Supreme Court on Friday issued a stay on the disqualification of six Chief Parliamentary Secretaries (CPS) in the Himachal Pradesh government, led by Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu. This decision also pauses the enforcement of a Himachal Pradesh High Court ruling that had deemed the appointment of such secretaries as unconstitutional.
The bench, comprising Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Sanjay Kumar, effectively put a halt to any actions based on the High Court’s decision that quashed the appointments of six MLAs to the positions of CPS. The apex court’s ruling ensures that these MLAs will retain their positions for now, without the immediate threat of disqualification.
However, the Supreme Court stipulated a clear directive that no further appointments of this nature should be made by the state government, citing that any such future appointments would be contrary to law. This directive aims to prevent the expansion of what has been a contentious issue within the state’s governance.
Additionally, the Supreme Court has issued a notice to BJP leader Kalpana Devi, who initially challenged the appointments in the High Court. The court has requested her response within two weeks and scheduled the next hearing for four weeks from now. The matter has been tagged alongside other pending petitions regarding similar issues, indicating the court’s intention to address the broader legal questions involved.
