Becoming a Member of the Parliament comes with many rules and even more responsibilities. Only some people can or should be allowed to be appointed as a Member of Parliament. It requires specific qualifications to hold the office of the Member of Parliament
Article 84 of the Indian Constitution prescribes the required qualifications to become a Member of Parliament. It includes i) the person must be a citizen of India, ii) the person must be 25 years of age for the Lok Sabha and 35 years of age in the case of Rajya Sabha, iii) the person must fulfil any such other qualifications prescribed under any other law in effect in India. When we talk about qualifications, we must definitely discuss the disqualification. Article 102 of the Constitution talks about disqualifying a Member of Parliament. The categories for disqualifications if the person is chosen as a Member of Parliament are as follows,
A. If the person holds an office of profit under the Government of India or the Government of any State
B. If the person is of unsound mind and is declared as such by a competent court
C. If the person is an undischarged insolvent
D. If the person is not a citizen of India or has acquired citizenship of a foreign state
E. If the person is disqualified by any other law in operation in India and made by the parliament.
In the case of Jaya Bachchan v. Union of India, AIR 2006 SC 2119, the Government of UP appointed Mrs. Jaya Bachchan as the chairperson of the Uttar Pradesh Film Development Council. She was also given the position of Cabinet Minister. She received all the perks that came along as well. The main contention was that she was using the office as an office of profit. According to Article 102(1)(a), the President decided she would be disqualified as a Rajya Sabha member. However, the Court held that the President should get an opinion from the Election Commission before disqualifying any House members. Therefore, the Court held that this petition had no merit and was dismissed. The Court also held that an office of profit is one that has the potential to generate a profit or monetary advantage. To the extent that the office brings with it or entitles the holder to any monetary benefit other than actual expenditures, then the office shall be considered an office of profit for the purposes of Article 102(1)(a).
Done By: Anoushka Samyuktha, B.A LL.B (Hons), LLM (Criminal Law), Junior Legal Consultant
For Origin Law Labs
