May 22 clipping in May 21 report: SC scans Buta report

Expressing doubts over the ‘truth’ in Bihar Governor Buta Singh’s report on the State Assembly dissolution, the Supreme Court...

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Expressing doubts over the ‘truth’ in Bihar Governor Buta Singh’s report on the State Assembly dissolution, the Supreme Court today asked the Centre if it was really prepared on May 21—the date it currently carries.

‘‘Was the report really prepared on May 21 or May 22?’’ asked Justice B N Agrawal, who is part of a five-judge Constitution Bench hearing a PIL by NDA MLAs of the dissolved Assembly challenging the dissolution.

What prompted the query was senior counsel Soli Sorabjee’s reference to a news clipping annexed with the Governor’s report submitted for the court’s scrutiny. The news item, which dealt with the impending split in Ram Vilas Paswan’s Lok Janshakti Party, was carried by

the May 22 edition of the Sunday Tribune.

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Sorabjee, appearing for the petitioners, wondered how the May 22 clipping could be annexed with the Governor’s report, which as stated was prepared a day earlier on May 21.

The bench of Justice B N Agrawal, Justice Y K Sabharwal, Justice Arijit Pasayat, Justice Ashok Bhan and Justice K G Balakrishnan, followed this up with a volley of questions to the Centre’s counsel.

Justice Sabharwal asked if the clipping was part of the report and when the Government had received it.

Additional Solicitor General Gopal Subramanium replied that the clipping was part of the

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report transmitted to him, quickly adding it was not gone into by the Governor.

He also said the letter dated May 21 was received by the Home Minister on May 22 and by the President, the same afternoon.

Opening a can of worms, the court then asked, ‘‘Does this mean the news item was not there when Buta Singh prepared his report or that he had not

considered its contents while writing the report?”

Sorabjee alleged that some

expressions in the Governor’s report were in sync with those in the news clipping.

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‘‘The Governor’s conclusion that 17-18 MLAs were perhaps moving towards the JD(U) was a perverse inference and wholly irrational,’’ he added.