A strange situation has come up before the Allahabad High Court which has been awaiting execution of summons issued for BJP MP Maneka Gandhi in September last.
A strange situation has come up before the Allahabad High Court which has been awaiting execution of summons issued for BJP MP Maneka Gandhi in September last.
Despite several attempts made to serve the summons on her in connection with a petition regarding suspected misutilisation of MP local area development fund (MPLAD) that she had allocated to a school, the HC has at last been told by Lok Sabha secretariat that the Speaker can’t undertake the responsibility to serve any legal process, civil or criminal, on a court’s direction.
“The summons sent for service through Lok Sabha Secretariat have been returned back with the letter of VR Ramesh, joint secretary, with reference to the direction of Government of India that Speaker of Lok Sabha Secretariat will not undertake to serve any legal process, civil or criminal or other communications, received from courts or other authorities or members of Parliament. The summons have been returned,” the HC has been told.
Faced with this unusual situation, it has directed that a notice is sent to her Ashok Road (Delhi). In case the summons aren’t served on Ms Gandhi, HC warned that “it may be constrained to make publication of the avoidance of service by her and may issue service by Advocate Commissioner or recovery of the amount involved in the matter by coercive steps.”
On a law suit saying Rs8.85 lakhs sanctioned by Ms Gandhi under MPLAD to a college at Pilibhit was underutilized, the HC had ordered in an inquiry and it was revealed that the college couldn’t verify expenditure of Rs1.14 lakh.
Since the amount sanctioned under MPLAD scheme and released by the Central government can’t be recovered as arrears of land revenue under the UP Public Money Recoveries Act, 1972, the HC said it would examine the legality of the prohibition. Moreover, it said there’s another important question that looks for a reply: The accountability of the concerned Member of Parliament for proper utilization of fund that he or she had released from the exchequer.
This issue assumes significance in view of several reports about susceptible utililisation of MPLAD.
There are also serious concerns expressed by certain stake holders that delay in completion of the process such execution of summons and serving notices that there’s been increasing pendency of cases.
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