Can convicted politicians, who incur disqualification to run for elections, head political partiesIJ
This question will now be dealt by the Supreme Court after a public interest litigation (PIl) suggested that political parties headed by convicted persons should be derecognised by the Election Commission.
A Bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra, Justices AM Khanwilkar and DY Chandrachud sought the response of the Centre and Election Commission in this regard. The Court clarified that it was only dealing with the question whether the power of EC to recognise political parties under Section 29A of the Representation of Peoples Act 1951 will also carry with it the power to derecognise such political outfits headed by convicted netas.
The order is bound to take within its fold the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) whose chief lalu Prasad is a convicted person. The fate of Sasikala, who claims to be the political heir to Jayalalithaa, will also depend on the outcome of this petition as she is currently in jail following her conviction in a disproportionate assets case.
Senior advocate Siddharth luthra appearing for the petitioner Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay submitted that convicted politicians are barred under the law from contesting elections but they indirectly call the shots by heading a political party and hold posts in them.
The PIl sought framing of guidelines to decriminalise the electoral system and ensure inner-party democracy as proposed by the National Commission to Review the Working of the Constitution (NCRWC).