A bench of justices A K Patnaik and H L Gokhale took up the hearing of the petition which has been pending in the apex court since 2005. The PIL was filed by Advocate Lily Thomas.
The petitioner has sought striking down sections 8, 9 and 11-A of the RPA, 1951 saying they were violative of articles 84, 173 and 326 of the Constitution as they expressly put a bar on criminals getting registered as voters or become MPs/MLAs.
Sections 8, 9 and 11-A of the RPA allows convicts to continue as legislators pending their appeals/revision. It also permits such persons to be registered as voters and be candidates for elections after six years of conviction/release from jail.
"That in the absence of any provision in Article 326 or elsewhere in the Constitution diluting or relaxing the said disqualification by efflux of time or in any other manner, the bar based on the said disqualification is total and absolute and operates without reprieve," the petition said.
