New Delhi/Ahmedabad, 10 July 2013

In a lanmark verdict, the Supreme Court of India today said that any MPs, MLAs convicted by trial court for two years or more sentence will be disqualified on date of conviction.

A bench of justices A K Patnaik and S J Mukhopadhaya in an order also said that the representative cannot contest elections again and a representative cannot cast his vote from jail, under any circumstances.

However, the court said this order will not have a retrospective effect so that those who have filed appeals in cases pending against them will not be affected.

“The only question is about the vires of section 8(4) of the Representation of the People Act (RPA) and we hold that it is ultra vires and that the disqualification takes place from the date of conviction,” a bench of justices A K Patnaik and S J Mukhopadhaya said.

Full text of judgement

Unluck Arjun Modhwadia

Gujarat Water resources minister Babubhai Bokhiria was recently convicted for three years term by a local court in Porbandar in illegal mining case. However Bokhiria continues to become a minister and MLA. A Gujarat Congress delegation led by Gujarat Congress President Arjun Modhwadia who was defeated by Bokhiria in Porbandar assembly election last year, met Gujarat assembly Speaker Vajubhai Vala after a lower court verdict and sought disqualification of Bokhiria.

However the provision of Representation of the People Act (RPA) says that a lawmaker cannot be disqualified in the event of his conviction in a criminal case if he or she files an appeal in the higher court. Bokhiria has already challenged the lower court order in higher court.

Today’s Supreme Court verdict however will not affect Bokhiria, because while delivering an order, Supreme Court has clarified that lawmakers who have already filed appeals against their conviction before pronouncement of this verdict will not get affected.

Suppose if Bokhiria was convicted after Supreme Court’s today’s verdict, he could be declared disqualified and Porbandar could witness fresh by-election without Bokhiria in picture. In that case, Arjun Modhwadia could fight the by-poll and could have good chances of winning in absence of Bokhiria. But one line in the verdict rescues Bokhiria.