New Delhi, December 12: The Centre today told the Supreme Court (SC) it has agreed to set up special courts to deal with cases against the country’s elected representatives. After all, in 2014, as many as 1,581 lawmakers – that is, Members of Parliament (MPs) and members of legislative assemblies (MLAs) – were facing prosecution in a mind-boggling 13,500 cases. The numbers would only have increased since. But with these special courts, an end is in sight to the inordinate delay in prosecuting politicians who have been sitting pretty in their positions for far too long.
The Centre told the SC today that it will start with 12 such special courts, and added that it has allotted Rs 7.80 crore for the purpose. It also sought some time from the top court to collect data on cases pending against elected representatives across the country, so it can better decide on how many special courts it needs to set up in total.