‘Ridiculous’: SC on plea to declare Satyendar Jain as ‘person with unsound mind’

The Supreme Court on Friday called “ridiculous” a plea to declare Delhi minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) legislator Satyendar Jain, who is in judicial custody in a money laundering case since May 30, as “a person with unsound mind” and disqualify him from the Assembly on this ground.

A bench of justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and AS Oka dismissed the petition filed by a Delhi resident with a fine of ₹ ₹20,000, observing that the plea is frivolous.

“It is such a misconceived and frivolous petition that it deserves to be dismissed with a cost of ₹20,000,” stated the court in its order.

Asking petitioner Ashish Kumar Srivastava to deposit the penalty within a week, the court remarked: “It (plea) is so ridiculous that we must ask you to pay cost.”

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Srivastava’s lawyer argued before the bench that Jain had told the Enforcement Directorate (ED) officers during questioning that he lost his memory on account of Covid-19. The AAP MLA therefore stands disqualified under Article 191(1)(b) of the Constitution which provides for disqualification of a lawmaker who is of unsound mind, the lawyer added.

But the bench responded: “He (Jain) did not say he has lost his memory but he perhaps said he doesn’t remember a few things. There is a difference. Also, Covid presented a scenario where people were affected. We are not saying whether he is taking advantage of this or not but we cannot entertain a petition like this.”

Srivastava had filed an appeal against an order of the Delhi high court in August, dismissing his petition. The high court had then noted that the Code of Criminal Procedure caters to all contingencies and it is for the prosecution/court to take appropriate steps in accordance with law.

In July, the high court dismissed a separate plea to suspend Jain from the cabinet following his arrest in the money laundering case, saying it is for the chief minister to consider whether a person with a criminal background should be allowed to continue as a minister or not.

ED arrested Jain on May 30 following a case registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) against the AAP leader in 2017 under the Prevention of Corruption Act. Jain is accused of having laundered money through four companies linked to him and where he was holding shares.