The Supreme Court today refused to restore the membership of five independent Karnataka legislators who had been disqualified earlier by the state assembly Speaker for allegedly violating the anti-defection law. A bench of justices Altamas Kabir and Cyriac Joseph, however, issued notices to the Speaker and the chief whip of the ruling party in the state assembly on the plea by the five legislators challenging a Karnataka High Court ruling which had upheld the Speaker's action. The apex court also refused to restore the voting rights of the disqualified MLAs to enable them exercise their franchise in the March 4 Rajya Sabha election from the state in which prominent yesteryear actress Hema Malini is a candidate.