Lakshadweep MP Mohammed claims reinstatement as MP due to LS secretariat's concerns over SC verdict
2 min read 29 Mar 2023, 03:47 PM ISTFaizal further said that the constituency he represented and the people there were denied a voice in the Lower House for 60 days.
PremiumLakshadweep MP Mohammed Faizal said on Wednesday that the Lok Sabha Secretariat reinstated him hours before the Supreme Court was scheduled to hear his appeal against being disqualified from office because they were concerned about the outcome, as reported by PTI.
Faizal acknowledged his reinstatement and stated that "it was obvious" why the LS Secretariat had sent the notification prior to the top court's scheduled hearing.
"It is obvious why they did it today. They could have very well done it after the Kerala High Court verdict suspending my conviction. Why did they wait for over two months after that?" the NCP MP asked.
Faizal further said that the constituency he represented and the people there were denied a voice in the Lower House for 60 days.
"I intend to write to the Speaker how I and the people I represent are going to be compensated for this," he told PTI.
“Based on the Speaker's response, I will decide the further course of action." Faizal also said he was looking forward to going back to representing his constituency in the Lower House.
On January 25, the Kerala High Court had ordered the suspension of Faizal's conviction, stating that failure to do so would necessitate new elections for his vacant seat, which would be extremely expensive for both the government and the populace.
A notification issued on January 13 by the Lok Sabha Secretariat said that Faizal was ineligible to serve in the Lok Sabha as of January 11, the day of his conviction by a sessions court in Kavaratti.
On Wednesday morning, the LS Secretariat reinstated his membership in reference to the Kerala HC ruling from January 25, only hours before the top court was scheduled to hear his appeal against his disqualification.
The Secretariat said that in view of the Kerala HC order, his disqualification "has ceased to operate subject to further judicial pronouncements".
In the case, 37 people were accused. Two of them had passed away, and the case against them was dropped. Of the remaining 35, four—including Faizal and his brother—were found guilty and given ten years in prison; the other 35 were found not guilty.
According to the prosecution, after wrongfully imprisoning Mohammed Salih and his friend Mohammed Kassim at a location on Androth island, Faizal and 36 other accused, along with some other identifiable persons, were armed with deadly weapons when they committed the rioting offence and intentionally hurt Mohammed Salih, son-in-law of late Congress leader and former Union Minister P M Sayeed.
When they arrived at the location, they were attacked for becoming involved in a political controversy during the 2009 Lok Sabha elections.
(With PTI inputs)
