A three-judge bench comprising Chief Justice M M Punchhi, Justice G B Pattanaik and Justice S Rajendra Babu issued the notice to D'Souza returnable by four weeks on petitions filed by Pratap Singh Raoji Rane and Speaker Thomazinho Cordozo.

The Panaji bench of Mumbai High Court on September 7 set aside the order of Cardozo disqualifying D'Souza and nine other MLAs under the anti-defection law and termed the Speaker's findings as ``partisan'' and ``vitiated.''

However, these two petitions were filed while the matter was still pending adjudication before the Panaji bench, which in the interim period had stayed Speaker's order disqualifying D'Souza and nine others.

D'Souza and nine others floated the Goa Rajiv Congress (GRC)after breaking away from the Congress and formed a coalition government with Maharashtra Gomantak Party (MGP) with outside support from BJP.

Rane's counsel Fali S Nariman contended that the Speaker had rightly disqualified D'Souza and nine others as there was no split in the Congress.

Nariman said the Speaker's ruling was correct as no split in the parent Indian National Congress had been announced before D'Souza and nine others formed GRC as was required under Paragraph iii of 10th schedule of the Constitution (anti-defection law).

The counsel also said the Supreme Court in an earlier case had ruled that a high court did not have the power to issue interim stay on a Speaker's ruling.

He said the Panaji bench of the Mumbai High Court without following the law laid down by the Supreme Court, had granted stay on the Speaker's order disqualifying D'Souza and nine others.

The government led by D'Souza, who was sworn in as Chief Minister on July 29 following the dismissal of the 43-month old CongressGovernment headed by Rane, proved its majority in the 40-member House on September 8 with 23 members voting in favour and 14 against the confidence motion.