The Goa Congress has moved the Supreme Court challenging the Bombay High Court's (Goa bench) order that had dismissed petitions seeking disqualification of 10 Congress MLAs who had joined the BJP, reported news agency ANI.
Girish Chodankar, the President of the Goa Pradesh Congress Committee, has approached the Apex court after the high court dismissed the disqualification pleas and upheld the decision of the Goa Speaker on 24 February.
The plea was filed ahead of the counting of votes for the new 40-member Goa Assembly, being held on Thursday, 10 March.
Chodankar's plea contended that the Speaker allowed protection to the Congress defectors, by invoking protection guaranteed to a legislature party member when the original party of a member merges with another party.
The plea sought the apex court's intervention, claiming the high court order could lead to political chaos and also pointed out that the Speaker held that the "deemed merger" of Congress with the BJP had taken place.