Mumbai/IBNS, July 3 -- The Bombay High Court on Friday referred to the issue of alleged "horse-trading" in Maharashtra politics while sharply criticising the Mumbai Police for issuing an externment order against an activist.

The court set aside the externment order against 49-year-old Saeed Ahmad Abdul Wahid Chaudhary, who claims to be the general secretary of the Socialist Democratic Party of India (SDPI), holding that the police action was "vitiated" and "mala fide".

During the hearing, Justice Madhav J. Jamdar made a light-hearted remark about the political defections witnessed in Maharashtra, where several MLAs and MPs have switched parties in recent years.

The remark referenced the Opposition's frequent use of the term "washing ma...