The Supreme Court on Tuesday issued notices to 20 rebel Trinamool Congress (TMC) Lok Sabha MPs over a petition seeking an early decision on their alleged defection.
The petition was filed by TMC leader Abhishek Banerjee, who has asked the court to ensure that the pending disqualification petitions against the MPs are decided without further delay.
The petitions were filed after the 20 lawmakers allegedly switched political parties. The cases are pending before Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla under the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution, which contains provisions related to disqualification on grounds of defection.
Supreme Court Does Not Issue Notice To Speaker
During the hearing, the court decided to seek responses from the rebel MPs and other concerned parties. However, it did not issue a notice to Speaker Om Birla at this stage.
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta asked the court to wait before issuing any notice to the Speaker, saying he would obtain instructions from him and inform the court about his position.
The court agreed to the request.
Justice Bagchi said the court did not want to issue directions to a constitutional authority but observed that such matters should be dealt with within a reasonable period.
For now, the Supreme Court will await responses from the concerned parties before deciding the next course of action.
The case relates to the delay in deciding the disqualification petitions against the 20 rebel TMC MPs, with Abhishek Banerjee seeking an early resolution under the anti-defection law.
