The Gauhati High Court has asked the Assam Governor’s Secretariat to file an affidavit on the imposition of Governor’s Rule in the BTC on or before May 15.
The ruling came after hearing on the writ petition WP(C) 2143/2020 – filed by former Deputy Speaker Nerswn Boro and former executive member of BTC Jagdish Sarkar challenging the imposition of Governor’s Rule in the BTC on Wednesday.
Though the Governors Secretariat had asked for three weeks time to file the affidavit which was opposed by the counsel of the petitioners but it was later agreed that the affidavit will be filed on or before May 15.
The bench also listed the Interlocutory Applications (IA) filed by Kokrajhar Lok Sabha MP Naba Sarania and United People’s Party Liberal (UPPL) represented by Rajkumar Prithviraj Narayan Dev Mech for hearing on Friday.
The elections of the BTC were scheduled for April 4 which were indefinetly postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The five-year term of the BTC government ended on April 27 and though Bodoland People’s Front (BPF) had urged for extension of the term by another six months, the Governor assumed himself to the council on the date and appointed Rajesh Prasad and Siddhartha Singh as administrator and principal secretary to the Council leading the BPF leaders to move a writ petition in Gauhati High Court under Article 226.
In the aftermath of the imposition of the Governor’s Rule in Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC) former chief executive member (CEM) and BPF president, Hagrama Mohilary said, “The elections of the BTC have been postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the nation in this time of emergency, people of the council was in need of a government. But instead of extending the term, the Honourable Governor has imposed Governors rule and gave the charge to Administrator. We strongly oppose this decision and filed a petition in Gauhati High Court against this order.”
Former deputy chief of the BTC and senior Bodoland People’s Front (BPF) leader Kampa Borgoyary had also termed the imposition of Governor’s Rule in the council as ‘unconstitutional’ and ‘unfortunate’.