EC sends opinion to Jharkhand guv in Hemant Soren mining lease case

New Delhi: The Election Commission (EC) has sent its opinion to Jharkhand Governor Ramesh Bais on a plea seeking that Chief Minister Hemant Soren be disqualified as an MLA for violating electoral law by extending a mining lease to himself, sources said on Thursday.

The opinion was sent to the Jharkhand Raj Bhavan in a sealed cover this morning, they said. The Jharkhand governor had referred the matter to the poll panel.

The BJP, the petitioner in the case, has sought Soren's disqualification for violating section 9 A of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, which deals with disqualification for government contracts.

Under Article 192 of the Constitution, if any question arises as to whether a member of a House of the Legislature of a state has become subject to any of the disqualifications, the question shall be referred to the governor whose decision shall be final.

"Before giving any decision on any such question, the Governor shall obtain the opinion of the Election Commission and shall act according to such opinion," it reads.

While dealing with such cases, the poll panel functions as a quasi-judicial body.