Himachal Pradesh High Court Ruling on CPS Appointments
The Himachal Pradesh High Court has declared the appointment of Chief Parliamentary Secretaries (CPS) unconstitutional, leading to varied reactions from political leaders in the state. The court’s decision mandates the withdrawal of facilities provided to CPSs and suggests the suspension of six MLAs.
Reactions from Political Leaders
Former Chief Minister and Leader of Opposition, Jai Ram Thakur, supported the court’s decision, emphasizing that the CPS appointments were unconstitutional. He stated, “From day one, we have been saying that the appointment of the chief parliamentary secretaries (CPS) by the Himachal Pradesh government is unconstitutional.”
Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu expressed a cautious approach, noting that he had not yet fully reviewed the verdict. He mentioned, “I have not read the HC verdict so far,” and indicated that the ruling would be analyzed in detail.
Congress MLA Kishori Lal acknowledged the High Court’s order, affirming the party’s respect for the judiciary. He remarked, “We respect the High Court’s order,” and downplayed the extent of facilities they would lose.
Congress MLA Mohan Lal Brakta, one of the six CPSs, also expressed respect for the court’s decision, stating, “We respect today’s verdict of the HC,” while clarifying that CPSs did not receive facilities equivalent to ministers.
Potential Legal Battle
The High Court’s decision has set the stage for a potential legal battle, with the ruling Congress considering an appeal and the opposition BJP supporting the court’s stance. The appointments were initially challenged by 10 BJP MLAs and an individual petitioner.
Background
In January 2023, the Himachal government appointed six Congress MLAs as CPSs, including Sunder Singh Thakur, Mohan Lal Brakta, Ram Kumar Chaudhary, Ashish Butail, Kishori Lal, and Sanjay Awasthi.
Doubts Revealed
Himachal Pradesh High Court -: The Himachal Pradesh High Court is a big building where judges work. They make important decisions about laws in the state of Himachal Pradesh, which is a place in India.
CPS -: CPS stands for Chief Parliamentary Secretaries. They are people chosen to help ministers in the government with their work.
Unconstitutional -: Unconstitutional means something is not allowed by the rules or laws of the country. In this case, it means the way CPS were chosen was not following the rules.
CM Sukhu -: CM Sukhu is the Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh. His full name is Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, and he is like the head of the state government.
LoP Thakur -: LoP Thakur refers to the Leader of the Opposition, Jai Ram Thakur. He is a leader from a different political party than the one in power and gives his views on government decisions.
Congress MLA Kishori Lal -: Kishori Lal is a member of the Congress party and an MLA, which means he is elected to help make laws in the state.
BJP -: BJP stands for Bharatiya Janata Party. It is one of the major political parties in India.
Appeal -: Appeal means asking a higher court to look at a decision again. It is like asking for a second opinion on a decision made by judges.