Pending cases against MLAs and MPs increased
Guwahati: Cases pending against MLAs and MPs are increasing in Assam. As per records, the number of cases pending against some MLAs and MPs as well as former MLAs and MPs stood at 38 as of December 31, 2018. The number of pending cases increased to 68 in December 2021 and then increased to 75 in November. 2022.
As per records, the types of such pending cases can range anywhere from attempt to murder to kidnapping, hate speech to inflammatory or provocative speech, misappropriation of funds to fraudulent activities. According to the law, if found guilty, the punishment in such cases can be life imprisonment or a minimum imprisonment of five years.
About 33 out of 75 cases are pending for more than five years. In some cases the hearing is yet to begin and in some other cases the investigation is yet to begin. In other cases, the work of taking statements of witnesses is going on.
Concerned over the figures, the Supreme Court on Thursday directed all high courts across the country to expedite the disposal of all pending cases against MLAs, former MLAs, MPs and ex-MPs.
According to the report submitted by the Gauhati High Court to the Supreme Court of India on August 19, 2021, there are 66 cases pending against MLAs and MPs with 32 judicial authorities in different districts of the state. At present the total number of such pending cases is 75.
According to sources, 40 of these are criminal cases. Sources said the cases pending in Assam are against 20 MLAs of the BJP-AGP-UPPL alliance, 12 of them against the Congress, and ten against the AIUDF, and the rest of the cases are against former MLAs and MPs.
The apex court issued a series of directions to the high courts to monitor the expeditious disposal of criminal cases pending against MPs and MLAs. The Supreme Court also said that high courts can also seek status reports on cases from all the district and sessions courts under their jurisdiction.
