VIJAY DEO JHA
Ranchi, Dec 26: Speaker of Jharkhand assembly Rabindra Nath Mahto on Monday issued a disqualification order of MLA of Ramgarh Mamta Devi who was convicted for five years with rigorous imprisonment by a Hazaribagh district court on December 8 in a firing case.
“Today a notification was issued and Ramgarh seat now stands vacated. She was elected as the MLA on the symbol of the Congress. Under People’s Representation Act she stands disqualified to contest any election for a period of six years after the sentencing period is over. Now the Election Commission of India will issue a fresh notification to conduct a bypoll within six months,” a senior official of the assembly informed.
According to the law, if a public representative is convicted with a minimum of two years of imprisonment, he or she shall lose membership. Such public representatives stand disqualified from contesting the election. The law says that such conviction shall continue to be disqualified for a further period of six years since his release.
Notably the court of additional district and session judge-4 Pawan Kumar held her guilty in Inland power plant firing case along with a local firebrand leader Rajeev Jaiswal. They were convicted under various sections of the IPC including 147, 148, 149, 307, 332, 326 and Arms act.
Notably in August 2016, a clash between villagers and police took place on the main gate of the power plant company in Gola in which four were killed. On the complaint of then BDO Dinesh Prasad Suri, FIR was lodged against Mamta and Jaiswal beside several others.
She is the second MLA who was disqualified as member of the Jharkhand assembly following conviction in a criminal case. In April Mandar MLA Bandhu Tirkey who later switched over to the Congress was disqualified after a special CBI court of Prabhat Kumar Sharma awarded him three years of rigorous imprisonment and a fine of Rs three lakh in a corruption case.
