Lakshadweep MP's Conviction Can Be Suspended Applying Recent Judgment In BSP MP's Case : Union Tells Supreme Court

The matter was listed before Justices Hrishikesh Roy and Prashant Kumar Mishra.

Right at the outset of the hearing, Additional Solicitor General KM Natraj highlighted that recently a three judges Bench has passed an order regarding the suspension of conviction.

“I have much better case. However, if the matter can be disposed of in the same terms, I may not have much objection.,” ASG added.

It may be noted that the ASG referred to the decision passed by the Top Court in Afjal Ansari v. State of UP on December 14, 2023. Therein, the Court, by 2:1 majority, suspended the conviction of BSP MP Afzal Ansari in a case under the UP-Gangster Act case, paving the way for restoring his membership in the Lok Sabha. While Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan agreed to suspend Ansari's conviction, Justice Dipankar Datta wrote a separate judgment expressing dissent.

In view of the above projection, the Division Bench ordered:

“Mr Sibal, ld senior counsel submits that this Court while issuing notice has also suspended the sentence of conviction. Mr. Natraj, the ld ASG, in his turn, submitted that recently on 14.12.2023, this Court has passed an order and perhaps this present matter can be…in the light of this said order….”

The Court accordingly granted time to the petitioner (Mohammed Faizal) to examine the matter and listed the matter after two weeks.

What has happened so far

Mohammed Faizal, Lakshadweep MP of the Nationalist Congress Party, was convicted (on January 11, 2023) by the Trial Court for attempting to kill Mohammed Salih, son-in-law of former Union Minister P M Sayeed, during the 2009 Lok Sabha polls. Mohammed Faizal was elected as a Member of Parliament in 2014 and again in 2019. Against the punishment, Mohammed Faizal and others had approached the Kerala High Court.

Initially, on January 25, the Kerala High Court had suspended the conviction and sentence imposed on Faizal. Against the order of suspension of conviction, the Union Territory of Lakshadweep and the complainant had approached the Supreme Court.

The Supreme Court, by order dated August 22, 2023, remanded the matter back to the High Court for reconsidering the suspension of conviction within a period of six weeks.

Subsequently, on 3rd October, a single bench of Justice N Nagaresh of the Kerala High Court, while hearing the matter afresh, refused suspension of his conviction. Pertinently, in its impugned order, the High Court had observed:

“Criminalisation of election process is of grave concern in our democratic polity. The tentacles of political crimes and criminalisation of election process have started grappling free and fair elections….. if persons with criminal antecedents are permitted to continue as Members of Parliament / Legislatures even after conviction by a competent court, that would only send wrong signals to public at large.”

On the previous occasion (October 09, 2023), a Division Bench of Justices Hrishikesh Roy and Justice Sanjay Karol stayed the impugned Kerela High Court's order. While doing so, the Court also directed that the order dated 22nd August of the Supreme Court will become operational. As per this order, the benefit of suspension of conviction was to continue while the matter was remanded to the High Court, thus permitting Mohammed Faizal to continue as an MP representing Lakshadweep.

Case Title: Mohammed Faizal v U. T. Administration Of Lakshadweep And Ors SLP(Crl) No. 12819/2023

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