NEW DELHI: With the air still not clear on the definition of "office of profit", the issue is already giving sleepless nights to the 18 Congress legislators in Delhi who are under the scanner. With President A.P. J. Abdul Kalam returning the Central legislation, uncertainty hangs over the fate of the legislation passed by the Delhi Assembly last month.

According to highly placed sources, the Delhi Member of Legislative Assembly (Removal of Disqualification) Amendment Bill, 2006, passed by the Vidhan Sabha on May 18 is pending with the Union Home Ministry. According to the latest information, the Ministry is still studying the Bill, especially in view of the controversy that arose after the President returned the legislation passed by Parliament exempting a large number of posts held by the Members of Parliament from the purview of office of profit.

Sources said the Bill was still lying with the Union Home Ministry and had not been sent to Rashtrapati Bhavan. What is worrying the MLAs from Delhi is that if the President returns the Bill, the Delhi Assembly has no power to again pass the legislation and send it back. As Delhi is not a full-fledged State, the "message of the President'' is binding on it. In that eventuality, the matter would fall under the jurisdiction of the Election Commission of India that is already looking into the matter on a complaint filed by senior BJP leader and Saket MLA Vijay Jolly. The Commission has already issued notices to all the 18 MLAs asking them why disqualification against them should not be initiated for holding office of profit. In their common reply filed on May 22, the MLAs had pleaded that as they had to collect a lot of documents from various departments, they should be granted two months' time and a personal hearing to file their reply in the matter. However, the Commission has not yet replied to the plea of the MLAs seeking extension of time putting uncertainty over the whole issue.

"The Congress party is not in a position to contest any by-election for the Assembly or the Lok Sabha in the given circumstances. It would face the wrath of the electorate for demolitions, sealing, water, power and many other issues. It would be disaster for the Congress party,'' a worried senior MLA remarked. Prominent among the MLAs who have been named in the disqualification petition are the Chief Minister's Parliamentary Secretary Nasib Singh; Trans-Yamuna Board Chairman Narendra Nath; Vice-Chairperson of Delhi Jal Board and Chairperson of Central Zone District Development Committee Anjali Rai; and Delhi Wakf Board Chairman Mateen Ahmed. The nine DDC chairmen include Rajesh Jain, Brahmpal, Ashok Ahuja, Kanwar Karan Singh, Balram Singh Tanwar, Rajesh Lilothia, Vijay Lochav, Vir Singh Dhingan and Anjali Rai.

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