Plea filed in SC challenging automatic disqualification of legislators upon conviction

New Delhi (India), March 25, 2023: A plea challenging the constitutional validity of Section 8(3) of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, has been filed before the Supreme Court by Ph.D. scholar and social activist Aabha Muralidharan.

The section lays down the automatic disqualification of a legislator from the parliament or State assembly upon conviction in a criminal case. The petitioner argued that this provision is ultra vires of the Constitution, as it curtails the free speech of an elected Member of Parliament (MP) or Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) and restrains lawmakers from freely discharging their duties cast upon them by the voters of their respective constituencies.

The plea, filed through advocate Deepak Prakash and drawn by advocate Sriram Parakkat, stated that Section 8(3) is in stark contradiction to other sections of the 1951 Act. The petition assumes significance in light of the recent disqualification of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi from the Lok Sabha after a Surat court verdict, which held him guilty of criminal defamation and sentenced him to two years in prison.

The petitioner argued that factors such as nature, gravity, role, moral turpitude, and the role of the accused ought to be examined while considering disqualification under Chapter III of the 1951 Act. Section 8(3) of the 1951 Act provides for an automatic blanket disqualification, solely based on the quantum of sentencing and imprisonment, which creates ambiguity regarding the proper procedure for disqualification, the petitioner contended.

The petition requested that the Court declare that there is no automatic disqualification under Section 8(3) and that any automatic disqualification under Section 8(3) be declared ultra-vires of the Constitution for being arbitrary and illegal.

The plea also sought directions from the Court to declare that the mandate of Section 499 of the IPC or any other offense prescribing a maximum punishment of two years will not automatically disqualify any sitting member of any legislative body since it violates the freedom of speech and expression of an elected representative.