SC: How can convicts barred from contesting polls decide candidates

The court was hearing a PIL by Delhi BJP leader and advocate Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay seeking a direction that convicted people be restrained from forming political parties and becoming office-bearers during the period they are disqualified.

supreme court, convicts, election candidates, convicts contesting polls, political parties in jails, indian express

The Supreme Court of India (Express Photo by Tashi Tobgyal)

The Supreme Court Monday sought to know how convicted persons, who are barred from contesting elections, decide candidates and how protection of democratic process could be ensured. “Here is a person who is convicted and disqualified from contesting an election. How can he decide the candidates for election? How the purity of democracy can be maintained,” a bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud asked.

The court was hearing a PIL by Delhi BJP leader and advocate Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay seeking a direction that convicted people be restrained from forming political parties and becoming office-bearers during the period they are disqualified.

“They cannot contest election because they are constitutionally debarred. Can they hold the party post and can they form a political party. Of course they can form an association of convicted persons, but can they form a political party?” the court said, asking the parties to submit their written notes on May 3 when the court will take up the matter for final disposal.

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Appearing for the Centre, Additional Solicitor General Pinky Anand referred to an affidavit filed by the government last week and said that no person can be barred from creating a party and holding posts in such an organisation.

The affidavit said there was no law to stop a convicted person from forming a party and sought dismissal of the plea. The government submitted that “appointment of post-holder to a political party is a matter of party autonomy, and it may not be apposite to preclude the Election Commission from registering a political party merely because a particular post-holder is not qualified to contest elections (on conviction).”

Appearing for Upadhyay, senior advocate Vikas Singh said 40 per cent of the legislators are either convicted or facing trial. “Forty per cent of legislators are either convicted or facing trial. That is why there is resistance. They do not want probity,” he said.

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