NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Monday turned down a plea seeking that its order on disqualification of convicted MPs and MLAs be effective even in case of lawmakers who were held guilty of serious offences before the judgement.

The NGO, Lok Prahri, had filed two separate applications seeking modification in the July 10 order of apex court which had said that disqualification shall not affect sitting members of Parliament or state legislatures who were convicted before the pronouncement of the order.

Its second plea seeking a direction to authorities to declare vacant the parliamentary seats of RJD chief Lalu Prasad and Congress leader Rasheed Masood for being held guilty in criminal cases was also refused by the apex court which said notifications have already been issued for their disqualification from the respective Houses.

“If the vacancies in both the Houses have not been notified, the cause of action for petitioner would be a fresh one,” a Bench comprising justices A.K. Patnaik and A.K. Sikri said.

While Prasad was convicted on September 30 in a fodder scam case, Masood was held guilty in a medical scam case and both of them are on bail.

The Bench, which dismissed the plea for modification of July 10 order to make it effective even in case of sitting members of Parliament who were convicted before the aforesaid judgement, said the question was dealt by it in the same verdict.

“This court has considered and given reasons as why the July 10 judgement would be applicable to the sitting member of Parliament to incur disqualification under section 8(1), (2) and (3) of the Representation of the People Act (RPA) from the date of judgement,” the Bench said.

The NGO had said 27 MPs and MLAs who have been convicted have continued to be member of legislative bodies.

“Exemption to already convicted sitting members is not in accordance with Articles of the Constitution which provide that the disqualification shall be effective instantly,” the petition had said, adding, “It is also not in consonance with the intention of the framers of the Constitution.”

In view of disqualification of Congress MP Rasheed Masood from Rajya Sabha and Lalu Prasad from Lok Sabha, the petitioner also sought that the vacancies be notified by the respective houses.

The Supreme Court had on July 10 struck down a provision in the electoral law that protects a convicted lawmaker from disqualification on the ground of pendency of appeal in higher courts.

“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,” the apex court had said.

The court, however, had said that its decision will not apply to convicted MPs and MLAs who have filed their appeals in the higher courts before the pronouncement of this verdict.

Under Section 8(3) of the RPA, a person convicted of any offence and sentenced to imprisonment for not less than two years shall be disqualified for that and a further six years after release. — PTI

NEW DELHI: As Anna Hazare’s fast entered the seventh day, the government on Monday declared that the Lokpal Bill is its highest priority and it is even ready to extend the current session of Parliament, concluding on December 20, for the passage of anti-corruption measure.

Citing Hazare’s backing to the Bill, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kamal Nath took a dig at AAP convenor Arvind Kejriwal, a one-time protégé of the Gandhian, saying those doing politics on the issue were finding fault with the measure.

Asked whether Samajwadi Party, which is opposing the Bill, has been brought on board, he said that his government will try its best to get the support of all parties for passage of the proposed legislation and it is “hopeful” about it.

“We are talking to all. We are appealing to all parties to cooperate with the government as the Lokpal Bill is the need of the nation,” he said.

Nath’s remarks came after a meeting of the Congress Core Group which saw Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress chief Sonia Gandhi huddled with senior leaders to devise a strategy for the passage of the Bill, scheduled to come up for consideration before Rajya Sabha on Tuesday.

“The Lokpal Bill is the highest priority of the government. It is a historical Bill for the country...The nation needs it... We want both the Houses of Parliament to pass it in this session.

“If needed, we will extend the Parliament session. If required we are also ready to sit till late hours to pass it....The Lokpal Bill is a very important priority for the government”, he said.

While Hazare has praised the amended draft Lokpal Bill presented in Rajya Sabha,  Kejriwal has dismissed it as a “jokepal”.

“We are always in touch”, Nath said when asked whether he planned to meet SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav again. But, at the same time, he made it clear that so far SP has not given any assurance.

He said that the government is ready for passage of the Bill with or without discussion.

“The opposition and obstruction are two different things,” the minister cryptically said, amid speculation that while SP is against the Bill, it may not choose to vociferously obstruct its passage in Parliament.

Earlier, SP leader Ram Gopal Yadav rubbished as “fabricated” a report that his party may relent on the issue and asserted that it will oppose the measure when it is taken up in Rajya Sabha on Tuesday.

“Our party will continue to oppose the Lokpal Bill in the Rajya Sabha and our stand on it has not changed,” he said outside Parliament House.

Describing the reported assurance given by SP supremo to Nath during a meeting as completely “fabricated”, Yadav said, “It has never been conveyed by Mulayam Singh that the Samajwadi Party will support the Lokpal Bill. It is absolutely wrong.” — PTI 

Telangana issue rocks Andhra Pradesh Assembly

HYDERABAD: Tension prevailed in the Andhra Assembly premises on Monday when legislators from coastal Andhra and Rayalseema regions tore off and set fire to copies of the Bill for formation of a separate Telangana state.

Soon after Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Bill, 2013, was tabled in the House, legislators from Seemandhra (Rayalaseema and coastal Andhra regions) opposing the state's bifurcation came out of the House and tore the copies of the Bill at the media point.

Telugu Desam Party (TDP) leader D. Uma Maheswara Rao was the first to tear the papers while finding fault with the Speaker's action in tabling the Bill amid the pandemonium earlier in the morning.

The YSR Congress party's Seemandhra lawmakers after tearing the copies of the Bill set them on fire, adding to tension at the media point. The police tried to prevent them but failed.

Legislators from the Telangana region cutting across party lines condemned the action of Seemandhra lawmakers.

Congress leader and government chief whip G. Venkatramna Reddy said the actions of protesting legislators were highly objectionable.

Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) leader E. Rajender said the action of Seemandhra leaders was an insult to people of Telangana and demanded their immediate apology. — IANS

NEW DELHI: Excerpts of an affidavit by a law intern, who has accused former Supreme Court judge A.K. Ganguly of sexual harassment, have been made public by Additional Solicitor-General Indira Jaising, sparking off fresh demands for his resignation as Chairman of the West Bengal Human Rights Commission (WBHRC).

In her affidavit to a three-judge panel set up by Chief Justice of India P. Sathasivam to go into her allegation that justice Ganguly had sexually harassed her in a hotel room on December 24, 2012, the intern has described in detail his alleged behaviour when she had gone to assist him in his work.

Justice Ganguly has strongly denied the allegations and refused to step down as WBHRC chief.

Jaising said on Monday that she had made the excerpts public with the “full support” of the intern and if justice Ganguly refused to resign, then the process should be initiated for his removal by the President of India. She has written to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in this regard.

The ASG said she would like state “very unambiguously that whatever I am doing, I am doing with her (intern’s) complete cooperation and keeping her in the loop and I would never ever make a document like this public unless I had her full support”.

The panel had video recorded justice Ganguly’s statement in which he denied the allegation of any sexual harassment.

However, the panel had indicted him by holding that the statement of the intern, both written and oral, had prima facie disclosed “an act of unwelcome behaviour (unwelcome verbal/non-verbal conduct of sexual nature)” by justice Ganguly with her in the Le Meridien hotel room approximately between 8 pm and 10.30 pm. — PTI

Face-offs between Indian, Chinese troops can occur: Antony

NEW DELHI: Not ruling out the possibility of incidents such as face-offs between their troops, Defence Minister A.K. Antony said on Monday India and China have now decided to resolve such issues amicably through the existing mechanisms.

On the incident where five Indian nationals were apprehended by Chinese troops inside Indian territory, he said the Indians apprehended by PLA troops were civilians and not Army personnel and the matter was resolved amicably.

"Now our decision is to maintain peace and tranquility. Whenever any incident takes place, that possibility cannot be ruled out as the boundary is very long ... both sides should come together and resolve it amicably," the Defence Minister said.

He was asked to comment on the situation along the Line of Actual Control in the sidelines of the Vijay Diwas to mark Indian victory in the 1971 war with Pakistan.

On the boundary talks with China, the minister said the country should not "expect miracles" in these parleys.

"Don't expect miracles in resolving the issue. What we are trying is that till a satisfactory solution on boundary issue is found, whenever incidents take place on border, through discussions and official mechanism, resolve those issues. Of late, we have been able to resolve the issues without much delays. That is an improvement," he said.

On the impact of the newly-signed Border Defence Cooperation Agreement, he said, "After the agreement, by and large, whenever any issue arises, we are able to resolve it as quickly as possible. It does not mean that there would not be any issues as long as the India-China border issue is unsettled, there can always be a possibility..."

He said during his and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's visit to China, both the countries had decided to maintain peace and tranquility along the LAC.

"We have been able to take a decision, till we find a peaceful solution to the boundary issue, " he said. — PTI

NEW YORK: A US federal court has given Congress president Sonia Gandhi till January 2 to respond to a Sikh body’s charges of protecting and shielding party leaders allegedly involved in the 1984 anti-Sikh violence.

Sikhs for Justice (SFJ) had filed an amended class action complaint against Sonia Gandhi on December 4 citing what it called “specific instances of impunity, promotions and party tickets” to Congress leaders and police officials involved in 1984 violence.

The SFJ complaint against Gandhi invokes the federal court jurisdiction over the case based on Alien Tort Statute and the Torture Victim Protection Act of 1992 giving the survivors of human rights abuses the right to sue the perpetrators in the US.

While SFJ claims that the court summons were served on Gandhi through hospital and security staff at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Centre in New York on September 9, Gandhi’s attorneys had challenged the service of summons. — IANS