New Delhi - The Supreme Court on Wednesday described a three-month delay in deciding disqualification petitions against 20 rebel Trinamool Congress Lok Sabha MPs as a “red flag”, while stopping short of setting a fixed deadline for Speaker Om Birla.
A bench of Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V. Mohana was hearing a plea by TMC MP Abhishek Banerjee seeking faster disposal of the 20 petitions pending before the Speaker.
Justice Bagchi said the lapse of time was significant because the outcome could affect other proceedings and the democratic process. “There are cases and cases. A few months may be a red flag and that is well taken. Mr Chandra’s petition makes a red flag that three months have lapsed. Why have you not finished it, when it is a matter of moments and has repercussions in various collateral proceedings and also the democratic process of the country?” he said.
Senior advocate Kalyan Banerjee, appearing for Abhishek Banerjee, told the court that the Speaker issued notices to the MPs on August 5 and gave them 14 days to respond. That deadline was later extended to September 22 after the MPs sought more time, and a further extension has now been sought.
Banerjee relied on the Supreme Court’s 2020 judgment in *Keisham Meghachandra Singh vs Speaker, Manipur Legislative Assembly*, which indicated three months as the outer limit for deciding disqualification pleas unless there were exceptional circumstances.
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Speaker, opposed a court-imposed timeline and said the MPs must be given an adequate opportunity to respond. “The Court may not consider fixing any time limit. The Speaker is expected to know what is supposed to be done. Everyone will have to be given an opportunity,” he submitted. Mehta also said the Speaker, as a constitutional functionary, may have to examine evidence and arguments depending on the case.
Justice Bagchi said the court was not seeking an inflexible deadline, but stressed that the Speaker must discharge the constitutional role attached to the office. Some disqualification disputes could be straightforward, he noted, while others may take longer.
The bench kept the plea pending instead of fixing a date for completion and said it would seek an update on progress. The matter has been listed after six weeks.
Banerjee has asked the court to direct Speaker Birla to conclude the proceedings expeditiously. The TMC has accused the 20 MPs of leaving the party and joining the Nationalist Citizens Party of India, and has argued that their conduct attracts disqualification under the Constitution’s anti-defection provisions.
The petition names the Lok Sabha Speaker and the House Secretary General as principal respondents and impleads the 20 MPs: Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar, Sudip Bandyopadhyay, Satabdi Roy, Prasun Banerjee, Rachana Banerjee, Jagadish Chandra Barma Basunia, Partha Bhowmick, Arup Chakraborty, Adhikari Deepak Dev, Sayani Ghosh, Bapi Haldar, Md Abu Taher Khan, Kalipada Saren Kherwal, Asit Kumar Mal, June Maliah, Mitali Bag, Khalilur Rahaman, Mala Roy, Sharmila Sarkar and Pathan Yusuf.
The rebellion followed the TMC’s defeat in the West Bengal Assembly elections.