SC fumes on tainted netas helming party

The Supreme Court with a view to preventing criminalisation of politics, questioned whether convicted politicians can form and head a political party, can choose candidates for the polls after they are disqualified from contesting elections.

A Bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra and justices A. M. Khanwilkar and D. Y. Chandrachud made this observation during the course of hearing of a PIL by BJP leader and advocate Ashwini Kumar Upadhyaya seeking a ban on convicted persons from forming or being officer bearers of a political party.

The Chief Justice orally observed, “How can a convicted person be an officebearer of a political party and select candidates to contest elections. This goes against our judgments that corruption in politics to be ostracised from the purity of elections. It is a strange situation that what convicted persons cannot do individually, can do collectively through some of their agents?

“A man cannot directly contest an election, so he constitutes a group of persons to form a political party and contest an election. An association of people can do philanthropic activities like have a hospital or a school. But when it comes to the field of governance, it is a different matter.”

A MAN CANNOT directly contest an election, so he constitutes a group of persons to form a political party and contest an election. An association of people can do philanthropic activities. But when it comes to governance, it is a different.