JUDICIAL PRONOUNCEMENT SAFEGUARDS RULE OF LAW...

The Apex Court has once again proved itself to be the only hope of the people of our country. In a landmark judgment delivered by Honourable Justices A.K. Patnaik and S.J. Mukhopadhyaya on 10th July, 2013 in Lily Thomas v. Union of India and Others, the Supreme Court has upheld that the Rule of Law is Supreme. In the instant case, the Supreme Court has declared sub-section (4) of Section. 8 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 as ultra vires the Constitution. An analysis of the relevant Constitutional and Statutory Provisions would enable one to appreciate and applaud the judgment of the Court in its right perspective. The Constitution under Article. 102(1) and 191(1) provides for the disqualification of membership of either House of the Parliament and Legislative Assembly or Legislative Council of a State respectively. In exercise of this power conferred under Article. 102(1)(e) and under Article. 191(1)(e) of the Constitution, Parliament provided in Chapter-III of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 the disqualifications for membership of Parliament and State Legislatures. Further Sub-sections (1), (2) and (3) of Section. 8 of the Representation of People Act disqualifies a person convicted of an offence enumerated in any of these sub-sections of Section. 8 from the date of conviction.

As it is nothing is fool proof so also the law of the country. No law is defect-free, so also the Representation of People Act. This is evident in Section. 8(4) of RP Act which provides protection to the tainted among the elected representatives of the people. The said provision which was in challenge in this case provides that notwithstanding anything in sub-sections. (1), (2) or (3) in Section. 8 of the Act, a disqualification under either sub-section shall not, in any case of a person who on the date of the conviction is a Member of Parliament or the Legislature of a State, take effect until three months have elapsed from that date or, if within that period an appeal or an application for revision is brought in respect of the conviction or the sentence, until that appeal or application is disposed off by the Court. After examining the Constitutionality of the said Section in detail, the Court declared that the sub-section (4) of Section. 8 as ultra vires the Constitution.

There is a great victory for the people of India who desire a corruption free, crime free political leadership. But we could see the political leadership is very much disturbed after this judgment. Like a caged tiger, they have started pacing up and down in panic to find out ways and means to stop this judgment being implemented. Opinions are gaining momentum in the political circles for a Constitutional Amendment to thwart the effect of this judgment. If they do it, the people of our country will not forget them. According to Jeremy Bentham, the greatest happiness of the greatest number is the foundation of morals and legislation. Let our political leaders not take away the greatest happiness that this judgment gives to the people of our great nation.

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