Supreme Court Seeks Responses on Election Costs from Resigning Legislators
The Supreme Court has issued a notice demanding election cost recovery from legislators who resign without valid reasons.
New Delhi, October 27 (Daily Kiran) : The Supreme Court of India has issued a notice regarding a petition that seeks to recover government expenses related to by-elections from legislators who resign without valid reasons. The bench, comprising Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud, Justice Joymalya Bagchi, and Justice V. Mohan, has called for responses from the central government, the Election Commission of India (ECI), the Chief Electoral Officer of Tamil Nadu, and six former legislators who resigned their seats.
The petition, filed by lawyer K. Suthan, challenges a Madras High Court ruling that dismissed his public interest litigation (PIL). The PIL aimed to hold legislators financially accountable for the costs incurred by the government for conducting by-elections due to their voluntary resignations.
Suthan has requested the establishment of an “election expenditure security” system. This would require any legislator resigning without a legally valid reason to deposit an amount equivalent to the cost of the by-election before contesting again. He has also called for a five-year disqualification for such legislators.
The petition highlights that shortly after the Tamil Nadu Assembly election results were announced on May 4, six legislators from the AIADMK resigned and later joined the ruling party. Their resignations occurred amid allegations of voting against the party whip during a confidence motion, which had led to disqualification proceedings against some of them.
According to the petition, these resignations allowed the legislators to evade ongoing proceedings and contest elections under a different political banner, placing an unnecessary financial burden on the government due to the subsequent by-elections.
Further, the petition argues that the Election Commission recommended in 2004 that candidates who resign and trigger by-elections should bear the associated costs, a suggestion that remains unimplemented.
After being denied relief by the Madras High Court, Suthan approached the Supreme Court. The High Court had stated that the proposed financial security and five-year disqualification would add new provisions to electoral law.
The High Court also noted that the right to resign from a legislative seat is a component of the constitutional scheme governing membership in the assembly, and additional extrajudicial conditions cannot be imposed through judicial orders.
