Delhi High Court dismisses plea seeking FIR against PM Modi for alleged 'hate speeches'
New Delhi: The Delhi High Court has rejected a plea seeking immediate action against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other candidates for purportedly delivering "communally divisive speeches" during the Lok Sabha polls, citing the plea as "misconceived."
Justice Sachin Datta dismissed the plea, stating it lacked merit. “This court finds no merit in the petition. The petition is accordingly dismissed,” the court said.The petition had urged the Election Commission of India (ECI) to take immediate action, including filing FIRs against candidates delivering hate speeches in violation of the Model Code of Conduct.
The petition referenced speeches by PM Modi in Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh, tweets by BJP Chief JP Nadda, and a speech by Union Minister Anurag Thakur in Himachal Pradesh. It criticized the ECI for purportedly failing to act on numerous complaints.
The plea argued that the ECI's inaction constituted a violation of constitutional duties and hindered free and fair elections.
“This inaction on the part of the Respondent is manifestly arbitrary, malafide, impermissible and constitutes a violation of its constitutional duty. It amounts to rendering the MCC futile, the very purpose of which is to ensure that communal harmony and the spirit of brotherhood is not given a go-by by candidates to secure victory in the elections,” the plea stated.
It added that the “omissions and commissions” by ECI are not only in complete and direct violation of Articles 14, 21 and 324 of the Constitution of India but are also “impeding free, fair and unbiased General Elections.”
“It is submitted that a bare perusal of the aforementioned speeches, that are readily available and are being widely circulated on social media platforms, sufficiently establishes their communally inciteful nature. The Respondent, despite being solely responsible for the conduct of free and fair elections, has miserably failed in its constitutional duty of preventing hate speeches thereby leaving the sanctity and integrity of the entire election process in a lurch,” the plea stated.
Despite complaints, no action had been taken against PM Modi and others from the BJP, the petition claimed.
“The Respondent's failure to take expeditious action is violative of the Representation of People Act, 1951, The Conduct of Election Rules, 1961 as well as the Constitution of India,” the plea states.
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Ordinance issued to increase number of Supreme Court judges from 34 to 38
New Delhi (PTI): The government has promulgated an ordinance to increase the strength of the Supreme Court from the present 34 judges to 38, including the Chief Justice of India.
The law ministry notified the ordinance on Saturday, which amended the Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Act, 1956, to increase the sanctioned strength of the top court.
So far, the sanctioned strength of the top court was 34, including the Chief Justice of India (CJI). Now, the number of judges has been increased by four, taking the sanctioned strength to 38.
The top court will now have 37 judges, other than the CJI.
With the apex court having two vacancies at present, and the ordinance coming into force immediately, the Supreme Court Collegium will now have to recommend six names for appointment as judges in the top court.
A bill will be brought in the Monsoon Session of Parliament to convert the ordinance – an executive order – into a law passed by Parliament.
The Union Cabinet had cleared a draft bill on May 5 to increase the number of apex court judges.
The strength of the Supreme Court was last increased from 30 to 33 (excluding the CJI) in 2019.
The Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Act, as originally enacted in 1956, put the maximum number of judges (excluding the CJI) at 10.
This number was increased to 13 by the Supreme Court (Number of Judges), Amendment Act, 1960, and to 17 by another amendment to the law.
The Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Amendment Act, 1986, augmented the strength of judges from 17 to 25, excluding the CJI.
A fresh amendment in 2009 further increased the strength from 25 to 30.
Article 124(3) of the Constitution lists the qualifications required to become a Supreme Court judge.
An Indian citizen who has either served as a high court judge for at least five years, or as an advocate for 10 years, or is a distinguished jurist, can be appointed to the top court.
The strength of the Supreme Court is increased based on the recommendations of the CJI, who writes to the Union law minister. After consulting the finance ministry, the Department of Justice under the law ministry moves the Cabinet with a draft bill.
