Kerala HC rejects Lakshadweep MP Mohammed Faizal’s plea to suspend conviction in murder attempt case
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Thiruvananthapuram: The Kerala High Court on Tuesday rejected the plea of Lakshadweep MP Mohammed Faizal to suspend his conviction in a murder attempt case.
This decision followed the Supreme Court's ruling on August 23, which overturned the High Court's previous order that had suspended his conviction in a case for attempting to kill Mohammed Salih, son-in-law of the late Congress leader and former Union minister P M Sayeed, during the 2009 Lok Sabha elections.
The apex court had directed the high court to decide the matter afresh in six weeks.
On January 11, 2023, a Kavaratti Sessions court sentenced Faizal and three others to 10 years in jail and imposed a fine of Rs 1 lakh on each of them for the murder attempt case.
Two days later, the Lok Sabha Secretariat notified Faizal’s disqualification as an MP under the Representation of the People Act.
On January 25, the Kerala High Court suspended Faizal’s conviction and sentence, noting that the Lok Sabha elections were only one-and-a-half years away and a bypoll at this juncture would lead to wasteful expenditure.
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Following the High Court stay, the Union Territory of Lakshadweep had approached the apex court.
While hearing the appeal, the Supreme Court had expressed concerns about the High Court’s decision to suspend the conviction solely on the grounds of upcoming elections.
It said the High Court had not adequately considered the true position of law with respect to the manner in which an application for a stay on conviction must be considered.
The Supreme Court said it was setting aside the High Court order “on this short ground alone” and remitting it back for reconsideration.
Subsequently, after the High Court had suspended the conviction in the murder attempt case, the Lok Sabha Secretariat reinstated Faizal's membership on March 29.
Pointing out that the consequence of not suspending the conviction would be “drastic”, the High Court had then said the “cumbersome process of elections will have to be started, and the exorbitant cost of a Parliamentary election will have to be borne by the nation and indirectly by the people” of the nation.
The court had then pointed to the enormity of administrative exercises required for the conduct of an election that would halt developmental activities in Lakshadweep for a few weeks. “Despite all these exercises and financial burdens, the maximum period for which the elected candidate can function will be only a period less than 15 months,” the high court had said.
