Uttarakhand High Court quashed imposition of President' Rule in the State

The Uttarakhand High Court on 21 April 2016 quashed the imposition of President' Rule in the state and revived the term of Congress Government headed by Harish Rawat. The court also asked Harish Rawat to prove his majority on 29 April 2016.

The decision in this regard was passed by the two-judge bench of the Uttarakhand High Court comprising Chief Justice KM Joseph and Chief Justice BN Bisht.

The court stated that there was no reason for the Centre to impose President's Rule in the state. It also said that the disqualification of the nine rebel MLAs by the Speaker under the Anti-defection Law was no material for imposition of President’s rule.

The court said that the President of India is not infallible and he, too, can go wrong. Therefore, the President's decision is open to judicial scrutiny.

The HC order came on a plea of ousted Chief Minister Harish Rawat, who had challenged the imposition of President's rule in the state.

Incidentally, the High Court, in a separate case, is also examining the issue of disqualification of 9 Congress rebel MLAs.

Background
Uttarakhand was plunged into a political crisis when nine Congress legislators of the state including former chief minister Vijay Bahuguna revolted against the Chief Minister Harish Rawat and turned to the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for support.

Following this, the Union brought the state under President Rule on 27 March 2016.

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