Power of Speaker to disqualify the State Assembly and the Parliament member and the Supreme Court Recommendation

The Supreme Court on Tuesday delivered a verdict two important declarations. 

1) The three-judge bench of Supreme held that the Speaker of the State assembly or the Parliament has power to decide on disqualification petitions for members within three months unless or otherwise there exists an extraordinary circumstance. Further courts have the powers to intervene on disqualification petition if the proceedings are delayed beyond the reasonable time limit. 

What the law does not prohibit is the court enforcing disqualification proceedings, which are quasi-judicial in character, when they are unnecessarily delayed.

2) The Supreme Court recommended the Parliament strongly to remove the Speakers’ disqualification powers and forming an independent tribunal to take up these petitions. The reason for this suggestion is that Speakers invariably belong to the ruling parties and they might act in a partisan manner. 

 

Further the court strongly recommended that Parliament should seriously consider taking away disqualification powers from the Speakers. These powers could be given to an independent tribunal headed by a former Supreme Court judge or a former chief justice of a High Court or form “some other outside independent mechanism to ensure that such disputes are decided both swiftly and impartially”.

Case Title : KEISHAM MEGHACHANDRA SINGH -Vs- THE HON’BLE SPEAKER MANIPUR LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY & ORS.