NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court agreed to consider on Tuesday the plea by suspended Lakshadweep MP Mohd Faizal seeking reinstatement of his Lok Sabha membership on the ground that his conviction and 10-year sentence in an attempt to murder case has been stayed by the Kerala HC.
Urging the bench to hear his plea, senior advocate AM Singhvi told the court that although Faizal was disqualified immediately after conviction, his membership had not been restored despite the HC staying his conviction on January 25.
Considering Singhvi’s submission, the bench accordingly tagged his plea with a petition filed by the Union territory of Lakshadweep challenging the stay.
Faizal and three other accused persons were convicted for offences punishable under Sections 143, 147, 148, 448, 427, 324, 342, 307, 506 r/w 149 of the IPC and sentenced by the sessions court to undergo 10 years of rigorous imprisonment. A fine of Rs one lakh each was also imposed on the convicts for attempting to kill Mohammed Salih, son-in-law of former Union Minister P M Sayeed, during the 2009 Lok Sabha polls. Faizal subsequently was disqualified by the Lok Sabha Secretariat from the Lower House of Parliament.
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Faizal’s conviction was stayed by the Kerala HC on January 25. Justice Bechu Kurian had noted that the accused in the case had not used dangerous weapons and that the wound certificates did not indicate any serious injuries.
“It is necessary that purity in politics and, consequently, in democracy is required to be infused. The decriminalisation of politics is an essential requirement of every democracy. As a constitutional court, it is the bounden duty to advance the constitutional objectives, including purity in politics. However, those lofty principles cannot be the reason for denying the application of the principles of rule of law. The societal interest in averting an expensive election that too, when the elected candidate can continue for a limited period alone if the fresh election is conducted, cannot be brushed aside by this court. The societal interest and the need to have purity in politics and elections will have to be balanced,” the HC had noted in its order.
Recording the ECI’s statement that it would take into consideration the Kerala HC's ruling staying Faizal’s conviction, the SC had earlier disposed his plea challenging the ECI’s press release announcing byelections for his constituency.
