New Delhi: Today the Supreme Court has put the onus on the Parliament, saying that whether lawmakers facing criminal charges be barred from contesting polls or should they be disqualified only after conviction, should be left to the parliament to enact a law.
The CJI while reading out the verdict has termed corruption as a “National Economic Terror.”
Political parties and candidates have been asked by the SC to publish their criminal records not less than three times in TV channels and newspapers after filing of nomination papers in a proposal to check mounting criminalization in our democracy.
On the directions of CJI (Chief Justice of India) Dipak Misra, a five-judge Constitution Bench is scheduled to rule its judgment today on appeal to bar politicians facing criminal charges like murder, kidnapping and rape from contesting polls and changing themselves into legislators and parliamentarians in Assemblies.
Convicted lawmakers are disqualified, not accused ones, under the Representation of the People Act.
The Bench constituting Justices D.Y. Chandrachud, A.M. Khanwilkar, Indu Malhotra and Rohinton Nariman had clarified that the Court has no right to legislate for Parliament.
Justice Nariman observes, “The court declares the law, Parliament makes the law.”
However, the CJI Misra urged to do something “to keep criminals at bay and prevent them from contesting polls.”
To prevent criminalization of politics at the very first step itself, Misra expressed the Court‘s Agony at the weakness of the society.
Under the Third Schedule of the Constitution, Justice Chandrachud asked how rape and murder accused are qualified to take the oath of affirmation to become a legislator.
Mr Venugopal submits, “A person was assumed innocent until he was proven guilty and nothing prevented an accused, who won an election on a public mandate, from becoming a lawmaker.”
