O Joy pitches for exclusive tribunal
Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, March 07 2021: Veteran politician Okram Joy has asserted that there is a grow-ing need to set up a tribunal which would exclusively deal with election related petitions and wrongdoings of MLAs.

Speaking to media persons at his Kakwa residence this afternoon, Joy reminded that elections to the Parliament and the State Assem- blies are held every five years.

A lot of petitions are filed at Courts after an election is held alleging that unlawful practices were employed in the election, there were errors in the nomination papers etc.

Section 86 of the Representation of People's Act provides for punishment of all the people who take recourse to unlawful practices during elections, Joy said.

Many election related petitions were filed at the High Court of Manipur during the current five-year term.

Many petitions were filed from Sagolband, Keishamthong, Patsoi, Kumbi, Wangkhei etc, he said.

Even though the current five-year term would expire soon, there is no indication of disposing the election-related petitions any time soon, he remarked.

With the wrongdoers not yet punished, their wrongdoings are projected as permissible which evokes a serious question on the electoral system of the country, the veteran politician said.

The power embedded in the Representation of People's Act is entrusted to High Courts but many cases are pending at High Courts, he said.

Section 86, para 2 of the Representation of People's Act states that all election petitions should be settled as soon as possible but this is a directive provision, not a mandatory provision.

As such, a large number of election petitions are pending at Courts, Joy said.

He maintained that Courts or Judges cannot be blamed for the pending election petitions.

An elected MLA who hops from one party to another should be dealt under the 10th Schedule.

Disqualification of some MLAs under the 10th Schedule and revocation of similar disqualification orders regarding some others have projected the Manipur Legislative Assembly in a very bad light, Joy said.

Keeping four/five Assembly seats vacant means the people of these Assembly segments are not represented in the State Assembly, he continued.

Law-makers at the Centre and the State need to devise a new mechanism under which disqualification cases or election related petitions pending at Courts can be settled speedily, Joy said.

The law-makers should work out a new mechanism to set up an 'election tribunal' which would deal with disqualification cases and election related petitions exclusively, he added.

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