Amicus to top court: Spl courts set up by SC to try lawmakers valid

‘NO ILLEGALITY CAN BE ATTACHED TO TRIAL OF CASES BY THESE COURTS’

NEW DELHI: Special courts for expeditious disposal of cases against sitting and former MPs and MLAs, set up by the Supreme Court under its special power, are valid and no illegality can be attached to trial of cases by these courts against lawmakers, the Supreme Court was informed on Tuesday.

The submissions were made before a bench headed by Chief Justice N V Ramana in a report by amicus curiae Vijay Hansaria and Sneha Kalita in response to vexatious legal issue whether minor offences, triable by magisterial courts, against lawmakers can be prosecuted before a special court presided over by a sessions judge who is senior to a judicial magistrate.

It has been alleged that such trials by sessions judge consequently lead to deprivation of one judicial forum for right to appeal which is ordinarily available to other accused.

The 34-page 15th report has been filed by the amicus curiae in a 2016 PIL filed by advocate Ashwini Upadhyay seeking a life ban on lawmakers convicted in heinous criminal cases and speedy disposal of cases against them and deals with the issue whether special court headed by an officer of the rank of Additional Sessions Judge can try cases which are triable by Magistrate under CrPC .

The report also deals with the question if a special court can try offenses without a committal order under CrPC and try cases without cognizance being taken by the magistrate under section 193 CrPC .