Gauhati HC flags delays in cases against MPs, MLAs in district courts; seeks report

Guwahati, March 12: The Gauhati High Court has raised concerns over the prolonged pendency of cases involving Members of Parliament (MPs) and Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs) in district courts across Assam.

A division bench comprising Justice Suman Shyam and Justice Arun Dev Choudhury, on Tuesday, observed that the progress of most of these cases had stalled at the stages of evidence collection and the accused persons’ appearance.

Noting that several of these cases were registered over a decade ago, the court questioned the reasons behind the delays. Referring to a report submitted by the High Court Registry on March 10, the bench stated that it was unclear why these cases remained pending solely for "appearance".

If the delays stemmed from the accused failing to appear or the complainant’s inability to initiate legal processes, the court queried why no consequential orders had been passed to address the issue.

In response, the bench directed the Registry to gather relevant information from the concerned authorities and compile a detailed report to be presented before the court at the next hearing.

The court further noted that some of these cases were stalled due to stay orders issued by the High Court. To address this, the bench instructed the Registry to prepare a list of all such cases involving MPs and MLAs and submit it to the Chief Justice on the administrative side.

The submission would seek approval for either constituting a Special Bench or listing the cases before a Designated Bench to ensure their expedited hearing and disposal.

The bench scheduled the next hearing for April 29, 2025.

This suo moto petition was initiated in line with the Supreme Court’s November 2023 judgment in the “Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay Vs Union of India” case, which laid down guidelines for the swift disposal of cases against sitting and former lawmakers.