SC: Set up special courts to try netas by March 1
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With a view to ensuring political accountability and to expedite the trial of netas with criminal track record, the Supreme Court on Thursday directed the Centre and the States to set up 12 special courts to try criminal cases against MPs/ MLAs by March 1, 2018.
A Bench of Justices Ranjan Gogoi and Navin Sinha passed this interim order, taking note of the Centre’s submission that the government has decided to decided to set up 12 special courts in different parts of the country to dispose off within a year an estimated 1,581 cases against MPs and MLAs pending since 2014.
The Bench in its order said that the Centre had submitted a scheme by which it proposed to set up 12 fast track courts to try the 1581 cases against MPs/ MLAs at an estimated cost of ` 7.80 cr and on December 8, the department of expenditure, Ministry of Finance has given in- principle approval for the same.
The Bench in its order said that the Centre had submitted a scheme by which it proposed to set up 12 fast track courts to try the 1581 cases against MPs/ MLAs
The Bench observed, “This is only a beginning and not the end of it. Meanwhile “you ( Centre) come up with details of pending cases across the country and we will deal with it.”
As the Centre is in the process of collecting details regarding the number of cases pending in each State, the Bench said it would be open to the Centre to set up one special court for a combination of States depending upon the pendency in each State.
The Bench directed the Centre to allocate the funds proportionately to the States concerned for setting up of the 12 special courts so that judicial officers can be appointed and make them operational by March 1, 2018. The sensational killing of a father- son duo by antitalk faction of Ulfa militants has raised serious question over the functioning of the Assam Police with outlawed Ulfa ( I) rebels releasing the letter written by deceased village- head to police, informing about the presence of Ulfa ( I) cadres in his village.
A group of heavilyarmed cadres of the Ulfa ( I) had on Monday night entered a house in Sonajan- Simaluguri village under Bordumsa police station and gunned down Anteswar Moran,
The Ulfa owned responsibility of killing the duo, claimed that father who was the president of village defence party was acting as police informer so outfit has punished them
◗ ( I), which president of the local Village Defence Party ( VDP) and his son Karun Moran, who was till recently the president of the local unit of All Assam Students’ Union ( AASU).
Anteswar is also stated to be a primary member of the BJP.
The incident has invited angry protest by locals in the area who not only observed 24- hours Tinsukia district bandh but also warned Ulfa ( I) to refrain from such heinous act in future.
The Ulfa ( I), which owned responsibility of killing the duo, claimed that father who was the president of village defence party was acting as police informer so outfit has punished them.
Though, the Assam police has been tightlipped, security agencies are extremely worried over the functioning of the police.
Pointing out that sixmember heavily armed Ulfa ( I) rebels had opened indiscriminate fire in the residential premises of MKB tea estate targeting the manager of the garden on December 8 at Konapather under Bordumsa police station in Tinsukia district, security sources said that same group of Ulfa ( I) rebels are suspected to have killed the father- son duo on December 11.
Informing that incident has created panic among the tea gardens and business houses of the Upper Assam district, security sources said that Ulfa ( I) has served extortion notices.