The dream of these 2 shattered with Uddhav Thackeray's resignation

New Delhi: Soon after allowing the floor test in Maharashtra, the Supreme Court allowed jailed Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) MLAs Nawab Malik and Anil Deshmukh to participate in the Maharashtra Assembly floor test which was scheduled to be held on Thursday at 11 am.

But as luck would have it, the dream of two former ministers in Uddhav Thackeray's government to come out of the jail for a few hours shattered within minutes with Thackeray announcing his resignation.

In the new scenario, BJP is preparing to stake a claim to form the next government which may make Malik and Deshmukh more anxious.

On June 20, the top court declined the plea of Malik and Deshmukh seeking temporary release from prison to cast their votes in the Maharashtra Legislative Council election.

A vacation bench had, however, issued notice to the Maharashtra government and others in the case and agreed to examine the issue relating to the interpretation of Section 62(5) of the Representation of the People Act 1951, which bars jailed persons from voting.

"In view of the larger question with respect to interpretation of Section  62(5) of Representation of the People Act 1951, we are of the view that matter has to be heard in detail. It's open for the parties to complete the pleadings within four weeks.

"On the question of interim relief taking note of the fact that the constitutional validity of Section 62(5) was upheld by the Supreme Court in the Anukul Chandra Pradhan Vs Union of India case and S Radhakrishnan Vs Union of India, we are not inclined to grant interim relief," the bench had said.

The Bombay High Court had on June 17 rejected the NCP leaders' plea seeking temporary release from prison for casting their ballots saying the constitutional right to vote is not absolute.

Malik and Deshmukh, both of whom are in prison after being arrested in separate money laundering and corruption cases, had then sought the court's permission to be let out of custody "for a few hours," and "under escort protection" to vote.

The high court had rejected the pleas of the leaders, saying that while their lawyers argued that their clients must be permitted to vote to uphold democratic principles, the concept of democracy "transcended electoral democracy." The embargo in law, imposed via section 62 (5) of the Representation of  the People Act, was based on reason, the high court had said, adding that it has been imposed to ensure "purity of electoral process and probity of the participants therein." The two leaders had moved the court earlier contending that as they are members of the Legislative Assembly and representatives of their respective constituencies, they ought to be given the opportunity to vote in the Council election.

"The claim to the exercise of this constitutional right can, by no stretch of the imagination, be said to be absolute," the high court had said in the judgement.

Earlier, Malik and Deshmukh had moved the courts for temporary bail for voting in the June 10 Rajya Sabha election from Maharashtra but were denied relief.