The Bihar Legislative Council defended the expulsion of RJD MLC Sunil Kumar Singh, arguing proper procedures were followed due to his history of misconduct. The Supreme Court has reserved its verdict on Singh’s plea against the expulsion. Concerns were raised about proportionality in punishment compared to another legislator’s temporary suspension for similar remarks.
New Delhi: The Bihar Legislative Council has defended its decision to expel RJD MLC Sunil Kumar Singh, telling the Supreme Court that due legal procedures were followed. The council argued that Singh was challenging the will of the House and had a history of misconduct.
A bench of Justices Surya Kant and N Kotiswar Singh reserved its verdict on Singh’s plea, which challenges his expulsion from the Bihar Legislative Council. The court has asked the parties to submit their written submissions within three days before announcing its final decision.
Senior advocate Ranjit Kumar, appearing for the council, stated that Singh had previously engaged in misconduct and that the Ethics Committee’s recommendation for his expulsion was properly debated in the House.
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On January 16, the council reiterated its stance, noting that Singh neither attended Ethics Committee meetings nor expressed regret for his remarks against Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. The council also pointed out that Singh questioned the competence and constitution of the Ethics Committee.
“Neither did the MLC attend the ethics committee meetings nor did he express any regret over the remark against the chief minister,”
the council stated in its submission.
Senior advocates Abhishek Singhvi and Gopal Sankaranarayanan, representing Singh, argued that the punishment was disproportionate to the alleged misconduct.
Singhvi highlighted that another RJD legislator, Mohd Qari Sohaib, received only a two-day suspension for a similar remark, whereas Singh was expelled permanently.
“I never said that it is my word, but people say that Bihar chief minister is ‘Palturam’,”
Singh’s counsel submitted, insisting that the principle of proportionality was not followed.
The Supreme Court bench remarked,
“You were a respected member of the House. You have to express some maturity in your statements. You should lead by example and not indulge in these kinds of statements.”
The Supreme Court had earlier restrained the Election Commission of India from declaring the bye-election result for the seat previously held by Singh, pending the final verdict on his expulsion.
Singh was expelled in July 2024 for allegedly making unruly remarks against CM Nitish Kumar during a heated exchange in the House.
The motion for his expulsion was passed by a voice vote on February 13, 2024, a day after the Ethics Committee submitted its report to Acting Chairman Awadhesh Narain Singh.
According to the report, Singh was charged with “insulting the chief minister by mimicking his body language” and questioning the competence of Ethics Committee members.
While Sohaib had apologized for his actions during the inquiry, Singh remained defiant, leading to his expulsion.
With the Supreme Court reserving its verdict, all eyes are now on the final ruling that will determine whether Singh’s expulsion was justified or a case of political overreach.
Case Details: SUNIL KUMAR SINGH v. BIHAR LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL AND ORS., W.P.(C) No. 530/2024
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