India court bars convicted lawmakers from politics; what happens to politicians falsely accused of DOWRY cases ??

India court bars convicted lawmakers from politics

 

Published on Jul 10, 2013
9:19 PM

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Supporters from the Students Federation of India (SFI) throw pieces of bricks towards the police during a protest near a university in the southern Indian state of Kerala on July 9, 2013. The protest called for the resignation of the state's chief minister Oommen Chandy over graft allegations. India's top court ruled on Wednesday that lawmakers should be thrown out of office if they are convicted of a serious crime, a judgement hailed as a major step towards cleaning up the political system. -- PHOTO: REUTERS

NEW DELHI (AFP) - India's top court ruled on Wednesday that lawmakers should be thrown out of office if they are convicted of a serious crime, a judgement hailed as a major step towards cleaning up the political system.

The Supreme Court said state and federal lawmakers will be forced to quit politics and will be barred from contesting future elections if they are convicted of a crime that carries a sentence of at least two years in jail.

"If a person has no right to vote (if convicted of a crime), he has no right to contest," Judges A.K Patnaik and S.J Mukhopadhyay ruled.

Some 160 lawmakers from various parties in the national lower house of Parliament are facing a range of criminal charges and more than 1,400 politicians from state legislatures, according to campaign group the Association for Democratic Reforms.

source

http://www.straitstimes.com/breaking-news/asia/story/india-court-bars-convicted-lawmakers-politics-20130710