Ranchi: The fate of 19 Jharkhand MLAs is hanging in balance before the Election Commission after Governor SS Razi referred their cases following charges and counter charges that each of them held an office of profit, "thus inviting disqualification".
As many as 13 of them belong to the BJP led NDA while five are affiliated to UPA.
The Governor also referred the case of Jobas Manjhi to the EC seeking its opinion on the status of all the 19 MLAs.
Fourteen of the MLAs are members of the Tribal Advisory Council while Chief Minister Arjun Munda and senior BJP leader Karia Munda were holding other posts.
If the MLAs are disqualified then the NDA governement led by Arjun Munda government will fall as it enjoys a narrow majority in the 81 member house.
When Munda had won the trust vote on March 15, 2005 the entire Oppposition had walked out.
Currently Munda enjoys the support of 40 MLAs.
Congress MLA Niel Tirkey said that the UPA memorandum originally comprised only five NDA MLAs and the names of the rest were submitted by one Harikrishan Lal in his individual capacity.
The charges against the Chief Minister is that he held the chairman's post of the Tenughat Vidyut Nigam LTD and the Greater Ranchi Development Authority and Karia Munda heads the 20-point Programme Implementation Committee.
The Opposition alleged that all the posts were deemed office of profit.
Tirkey said that most of the UPA MLAs would leave for Delhi today to press their case before President APJ Abdul Kalam.
The Act only allows "travelling allowance, daily allowance, or any allowance in the shape of honorarium, which may be paid to the holder of the office for the purpose of reimbursing the personal expenditure incurred by him in attending the meetings of the committee or body or performing any other functions as the holder of the said office."
Senior BJP leader and Vice-Chairman of the state Planning Commission Saryu Roy claimed that except for the Leader of the opposition Sudhir Mahto, who is among the 19 MLAs referred by Goveror Syed Sibtey Razi to the CEC, "the remaining 18 members are protected by the act as they are either chairman or member of any committee or body".
Roy is also one of the members, whose name has been referred to the CEC.
Among the 19 names referred to the CEC are Chief Minister Arjun Munda, Nilkanth Singh Munda, Ashok Kumar Bhagat, Loknath Mahto, Upendra Das, Saryu Roy, Karia Munda, Chhatruram Mahto, Putkar Hembrom, Tala Marandi, Chandrash Oraon of the BJP. Khiru Mahto, Radha Krishna Kishore belong to the JD(U).
Among opposition names referred are Sudhir Mahto, Shushila Hansda, Amulya Sardar, Sukhram Oraon of the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha, Thomas Hansda of the Congress and Joba Manjhi of the United Goan Democratic Party.
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