Congress MLA Bhaga Barad plea sent to lower court, again

A sessions court in Veraval will have to hear the plea of disqualified Congress MLA Bhaga Barad seeking stay on his conviction for the third time

The Gujarat High Court once again remanded the matter back to the lower court, directing it on Wednesday to hear it afresh. The direction came from the single-judge bench of Justice SH Vora, which was hearing Barad's appeal against the Veraval court's refusal to stay his conviction in a mineral theft case. Notably, Justice Vora set aside the sessions court's order for not being a reasoned one and directed the lower court to hear the parties afresh.

Earlier too, Justice Sonia Gokani, in an appeal filed by the state government, had set-aside the Veraval court's order in the same case, where the latter had granted a stay on Barad's conviction, for being devoid of 'reasons'.

Initially, Barad appealed before Sessions court for a stay on the conviction order passed by a magisterial court on March 1. Then the state government moved high court, which quashed the order for lack of reasons and remanded the matter to the sessions court for fresh adjudication.

The Case

• Bhaga Barad has been fighting his disqualification by Assembly speaker Rajendra Trivedi after being convicted in a mineral theft case on March 1
• He is also fighting EC decision to announce bypoll for Talala constituency, despite a stay on his conviction