Amritpal Singh has approached Punjab and Haryana High Court seeking temporary release to attend Parliament, where he represents Khadoor Sahib constituency Time is fast running out for Lok Sabha member Amritpal Singh to secure parole to attend the winter session of Parliament, with his plea remaining unheard on Monday as lawyers abstained from work.
With the session scheduled to conclude on December 19, the matter is now listed for hearing on Tuesday, leaving a narrowing window of barely three working days even if relief is granted.
Amritpal Singh has approached the Punjab and Haryana High Court seeking temporary release to attend Parliament, where he represents the Khadoor Sahib constituency. The case could not be taken up on Monday due to the lawyers’ decision, pushing the hearing to December 16 and intensifying the uncertainty around his ability to “meaningfully participate” in the ongoing session.
Punjab has already mounted a strong opposition to the parole plea, asserting that once a detained MP enters Parliament, neither the executive nor the judiciary can regulate, restrict or pre-condition what he might say on the floor of the House.
Appearing for Punjab, senior advocate Anupam Gupta had told the Bench that any undertaking offered by Amritpal Singh regarding the subject of his speech would be legally unenforceable once he entered Parliament. Anchoring his submissions in Article 105 of the Constitution, Gupta maintained that the provision conferred absolute freedom of speech on MPs within the House, coupled with immunity from court proceedings for anything said or voted there. The state had also cautioned that even a single speech by the detained MP could set the five rivers afire.
The Bench had previously asked Amritpal Singh’s counsel to indicate the subject he proposed to raise in Parliament. The response was that the MP intended to speak on floods and the plight of more than 1,000 affected villages, asserting that those suffering needed representation in Parliament.
Senior counsel RS Bains also suggested on Amritpal Singh’s behalf that the MP could attend the parliamentary proceedings through videoconferencing. Appearing for the Lok Sabha Speaker, Additional Solicitor General of India Satya Pal Jain, however, opposed the suggestion, stating that no such provision existed.
Countering the contention that non-appearance for 60 days could result in the seat being declared vacant, Jain submitted during a previous hearing that Amritpal Singh’s absence had already been condoned till August 8 and that no further request for condonation was received thereafter, asserting that the possibility of the seat being declared vacant was nil.
The Khadoor Sahib MP, detained in Dibrugarh Central Jail under the National Security Act since April 2023, had approached the High Court after the Amritsar District Magistrate rejected his request for temporary release on November 24. The rejection, according to the petition, was “illegal, arbitrary and cryptic,” and based on adverse assessments by the District Magistrate and the rural Senior Superintendent of Police, who had described his presence in Parliament as a threat to public order.
The matter, with today’s adjournment, has reached a time-sensitive stage. Even if the high court is able to take up the plea on Tuesday, the limited remaining duration of the Winter Session might have a bearing on the practical relief sought, with Parliament scheduled to adjourn on December 19.
Proceedings at High Court remains affected
Proceedings at the High Court remained affected on Monday after the Bar abstained from work following a unanimous resolution of the General House. The decision was taken at an emergent meeting convened in connection with a complaint by an advocate alleging harassment, assault and criminal trespass by officials of CIA-1, Hisar.
The Bar also cited alleged inaction by the Mohali/Nayagaon police despite request to Punjab Advocate-General in the matter. It was stated that FIR was not registered against the officials concerned at Nayagaon police station in Mohali.
The General House resolved to abstain from work with effect from December 15, with a decision on the future course of action to be taken at a meeting proposed to be held again on Tuesday