New Delhi:

The special court that hears criminal cases involving MPs and members of the Legislative Assembly will decide more than 2,000 cases by 2023, the Supreme Court was told.

Senior advocate Vijay Hansaria, who was appointed as amicus curiae in the PIL seeking expeditious disposal of criminal cases against MPs/MLAs, said in an affidavit filed by him that more directions are needed , to allow for the expeditious adjudication of pending trials and investigations under the strict supervision of the Department of Justice. various high courts as around 501 candidates with criminal cases are contesting in the first two phases of the Lok Sabha elections.

Referring to the report of the NGO ‘Association for Democratic Reforms of Lok Sabha Elections 2024 Phase I and II’, Mr. Hansaria, assisted by advocate Sneha Kalita, said that out of 2,810 candidates (Phase I- 1,618 candidates, second phase – 1,192 candidates), 501 (18%) candidates are facing criminal cases, of which 327 (12%) are serious criminal cases (punishable with imprisonment of 5 years and more ).

“The same was true in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, out of 7,928 candidates, 1,500 candidates (19%) had criminal cases and 1,070 candidates (13%) had serious criminal cases. However, out of 514 elected Among MPs, 225 (44%) are facing criminal cases in the 17th Lok Sabha (2019-2024).

“Hence, candidates with criminal cases won more seats than candidates without criminal cases. In such circumstances, it is necessary for this court to pass further orders to expeditiously dispose of the pending cases under the strict supervision of the respective High Courts trial and investigation,” the affidavit states.

Mr. Hansaria, who is assisting the court in the PIL filed by Ashwini Upadhyay to expeditiously dispose of the case against the legislator, said: “It is noteworthy that in view of the current proceedings before this court, Following the directions issued in various high courts as well as special courts MPs/MLAs, more than 2,000 cases have been decided by 2023. However, a large number of cases are pending and many of them are taking a long time to be heard.”

He gave a table based on information received from different high courts that as of January 1, 2023, there were 4,697 criminal cases against legislators and 2,018 had been decided last year.

The affidavit stated that 1,746 new criminal cases were filed against MPs/MPs in 2023, leaving 4,474 cases pending as of January 1, 2024.

As of January 1, 2023, the Uttar Pradesh special court had decided up to 766 cases out of 1,300. Delhi had 105 cases early last year and had disposed of 103 cases as of December 31, 2023.

As of January 1, 2023, some large states such as Maharashtra have decided 232 out of 476 cases against MPs/MLAs, and West Bengal has decided 13 out of 26 cases. Since then, Gujarat has decided 30 out of 48 cases, Karnataka has decided 150 out of 226 cases, and Kerala has decided 132 out of 226 cases. 370 cases and Bihar adjudicated 171 out of 525 cases.

Mr. Hansaria said that although many cases have been decided, a large number of cases are still pending for a long time.

“Therefore, it is necessary for the High Court to ask the presiding officer of the special court MP/MLA to provide a report along with a copy of the order sheet in all cases which are pending for 3 years or more due to long pendency for the past one year.

“It may be clarified that only a copy of the order sheet and not the entire case file is sent so that the trial is not affected. Thereafter, the High Court may pass appropriate orders, micro-examine each case and give positive directions for trial It could be done within a year,” he said.

He sought direction from the Supreme Court to create a model website on the pattern of the National Judicial Data Grid for uploading real-time information on the progress of proceedings against lawmakers.

“For this purpose, this court may constitute a committee chaired by a sitting judge of this court. The committee may consist of the Chief Justice/Judges of some High Courts, members of the Electronic Commission, nominated National Information Center (NIC) and and such other persons as this court deems appropriate,” the affidavit states.

On micro-monitoring of cases pending for more than three years, Mr. Hansaria said the High Courts (Allahabad, Delhi, Punjab and Haryana, Telangana and Tripura) passed effective detailed orders to monitor the trial progress of cases, while other courts, the High Court, only seek information on pending cases.

The affidavit said: “This court may consider passing appropriate directions for registration of the Suo Motu writ petition by the High Court pursuant to the judgment and order dated November 9, 2023, closely monitor the progress and pass appropriate directions if necessary. “

On November 9 last year, in a major judgment aimed at speedy hearing of more than 5,000 criminal cases against parliamentarians, the Supreme Court directed the high court to set up a special court to oversee the speedy disposal of cases.

It also asked the special court not to postpone proceedings in such matters except “for rare and compelling reasons”. The Supreme Court issued a slew of directions to high courts, district judges and special courts designated to hear matters related to legislators, directing that criminal cases against members of Parliament, the Legislative Assembly and the Legislative Council be prioritized.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)