On deadlines, we must also look within: Supreme Court

TMC MLAs’ disqualification plea: SC says judiciary must introspect before setting deadlines

NEW DELHI: On a petition seeking direction to West Bengal speaker to expeditiously decide the disqualification petitions against rebel TMC MLAs, SC Monday said before setting a deadline for other constitutional authorities, the judiciary must introspect whether it conformed to statutory deadlines for adjudication of cases.When senior advocate Kapil Sibal pressed for seeking a response from the office of the speaker on the three-month-old disqualification petitions, a bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana said it will dispose of the petition asking the Supreme Court to abide by its 2020 judgement in Keisham Meghachandra Singh case, fixing a three-month deadline for a decision by the speaker.Sibal said he had no problem with this order but requested the court to examine the set pattern in which speakers delay a decision on disqualification petitions placing a premium to defections.Justice Bagchi said, "We should hold the mirror to ourselves before giving directions. There are so many statutes that require the judiciary to conclude proceedings within a timeframe. We are gloriously in breach of these."The disqualifications were filed on July 8 by TMC against 10 rebel MLAs who formed a separate block.

The three-month time period for the speaker to decide the disqualification petitions ends on Oct 8.

The CJI-headed bench said, "We have every reason to believe that the speaker of the legislative assembly is fully cognisant of the principles stated in the Keisham Meghachandra Singh ruling and will make all endeavour to take an appropriate decision within that framework."