12-10-2023 : The Supreme Court has taken a significant step to expedite the hearing of multiple pending cases by announcing its intention to issue a common order for several nine-judge and seven-judge bench matters. These cases cover a wide range of issues, including those concerning money bills and the power of speakers to disqualify Members of Legislative Assembly (MLAs). A seven-judge bench, presided over by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud, considered six seven-judge and four nine-judge bench cases during this deliberation.
One of the cases before the seven-judge bench relates to the 2016 Nabam Rebia verdict, which addresses the speaker’s authority to disqualify MLAs. This particular ruling was delivered by a five-judge Constitution bench. The objective behind issuing a common order is to prepare these cases for hearing efficiently. The court aims to align these cases with the circular issued on August 22, 2023, which stipulates that pleadings, documents, and precedents must be compiled within a specific timeframe.
To facilitate this process, the Supreme Court plans to appoint nodal counsel for each case, responsible for creating a common compilation of relevant materials. The advocates involved in these cases have been requested to provide the names of the nodal counsel for each case.
Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, representing certain cases, suggested that the bench provide hearing dates in advance to allow lawyers to adequately prepare. Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud expressed his willingness to examine the calendar of the benches to accommodate this request. Furthermore, the bench encouraged lawyers to estimate the expected duration of each case.
Notably, many of these cases have remained unresolved for two decades, underscoring the importance of addressing them in a timely manner. Among the issues to be tackled is the controversy surrounding money bills, such as the Aadhaar Bill, which were introduced in a manner that circumvented the Rajya Sabha. These bills were categorized as money bills, limiting the Rajya Sabha’s ability to amend or reject them, thereby evoking debate on the validity of such categorizations.
In November 2019, a five-judge bench of the Supreme Court had referred the issue of the Finance Act, 2017’s passage as a money bill to a larger bench for examination. The decision to expedite the hearing of these cases and the determination to issue a common order represent significant strides toward resolving these longstanding legal disputes and providing clarity on these critical issues.