1,097 criminal cases pending against lawmakers before special courts, Centre tells SC
New Delhi, Sep 11 : The Centre on Tuesday informed the Supreme Court that 1097 criminal cases are pending before 12 special courts against members of parliament and members of State legislatures in 11 states and a Union Territory.
The Ministry of Law and Justice in an affidavit told the court that there are a dozen courts -- six sessions and five magistrate courts (in the case of Tamil Nadu, the class of the court has not been indicated). As many as 1,233 criminal cases involving MPs and MLAs were transferred to these courts.
Of these 1,233 cases, 136 have been disposed of and 1,097 are pending.
The Centre's reply came in response to August 21 order of the top court seeking to know the number of special courts that have been set up following its December 14, 2017 order and the number of cases pending before these courts.
Of the special courts, two are in Delhi, one each in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh. These courts, Centre told the court, would function within the territorial jurisdiction of the state they have been set up.
In the remaining states where the cases against MP/MLAs are less than 65, the Centre has said these would be tried by regular courts in fast-track mode.
On the requirement of additional courts, the Centre said that Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Patna and Calcutta high courts have said that there was no need for additional courts.
The Bombay High Court has said it needs additional courts, but it has not indicated the number. The Delhi High Court has left it to the government to take a call. The Madras High Court, Andhra Pradesh High Court (for both Telangana and Andhra Pradesh) and Allahabad High Court, the Centre said have not furnished any information.
The top court by its December 2017 order had directed the Centre to set up special courts for trying criminal cases against lawmakers so that trial in these cases could conclude in a year.
The top court order came on a petition by Supreme Court lawyer and BJP leader Ashwimni Kumar Upadhyay who is seeking that the trial in criminal cases against the MPs/MLAs be done by special courts and conclude within one year.
The matter is listed for hearing on Wednesday.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Single higher education regulator bill tabled in LS; Oppn flags ‘centralisation,' JPC likely
New Delhi: A bill to set up a 13-member body to regulate institutions of higher education was introduced in the Lok Sabha on Monday.
Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan introduced the Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan Bill, which seeks to establish an overarching higher education commission along with three councils for regulation, accreditation, and ensuring academic standards for universities and higher education institutions in India.
Meanwhile, the move drew strong opposition, with members warning that it could weaken institutional autonomy and result in excessive centralisation of higher education in India.
The Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan Bill, 2025, earlier known as the Higher Education Council of India (HECI) Bill, has been introduced in line with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.
The proposed legislation seeks to merge three existing regulatory bodies, the University Grants Commission (UGC), the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), and the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE), into a single unified body called the Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan.
At present, the UGC regulates non-technical higher education institutions, the AICTE oversees technical education, and the NCTE governs teacher education in India.
Under the proposed framework, the new commission will function through three separate councils responsible for regulation, accreditation, and the maintenance of academic standards across universities and higher education institutions in the country.
According to the Bill, the present challenges faced by higher educational institutions due to the multiplicity of regulators having non-harmonised regulatory approval protocols will be done away with.
The higher education commission, which will be headed by a chairperson appointed by the President of India, will cover all central universities and colleges under it, institutes of national importance functioning under the administrative purview of the Ministry of Education, including IITs, NITs, IISc, IISERs, IIMs, and IIITs.
At present, IITs and IIMs are not regulated by the University Grants Commission (UGC).
Government to refer bill to JPC; Oppn slams it
The government has expressed its willingness to refer it to a joint committee after several members of the Lok Sabha expressed strong opposition to the Bill, stating that they were not given time to study its provisions.
Responding to the opposition, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju said the government intends to refer the Bill to a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) for detailed examination.
Congress Lok Sabha MP Manish Tewari warned that the Bill could result in “excessive centralisation” of higher education. He argued that the proposed law violates the constitutional division of legislative powers between the Union and the states.
According to him, the Bill goes beyond setting academic standards and intrudes into areas such as administration, affiliation, and the establishment and closure of university campuses. These matters, he said, fall under Entry 25 of the Concurrent List and Entry 32 of the State List, which cover the incorporation and regulation of state universities.
Tewari further stated that the Bill suffers from “excessive delegation of legislative power” to the proposed commission. He pointed out that crucial aspects such as accreditation frameworks, degree-granting powers, penalties, institutional autonomy, and even the supersession of institutions are left to be decided through rules, regulations, and executive directions. He argued that this amounts to a violation of established constitutional principles governing delegated legislation.
Under the Bill, the regulatory council will have the power to impose heavy penalties on higher education institutions for violating provisions of the Act or related rules. Penalties range from ₹10 lakh to ₹75 lakh for repeated violations, while establishing an institution without approval from the commission or the state government could attract a fine of up to ₹2 crore.
Concerns were also raised by members from southern states over the Hindi nomenclature of the Bill. N.K. Premachandran, an MP from the Revolutionary Socialist Party representing Kollam in Kerala, said even the name of the Bill was difficult to pronounce.
He pointed out that under Article 348 of the Constitution, the text of any Bill introduced in Parliament must be in English unless Parliament decides otherwise.
DMK MP T.M. Selvaganapathy also criticised the government for naming laws and schemes only in Hindi. He said the Constitution clearly mandates that the nomenclature of a Bill should be in English so that citizens across the country can understand its intent.
Congress MP S. Jothimani from Tamil Nadu’s Karur constituency described the Bill as another attempt to impose Hindi and termed it “an attack on federalism.”
_vb_28.jpeg)
