polity hard Fill in the Blank

In Keisham Meghachandra Singh v. Hon'ble Speaker Manipur Legislative Assembly (2020), the Supreme Court emphasized that disqualification petitions under the Tenth Schedule must be decided by the Speaker within a ______ time, failing which courts may intervene.

  1. fixed statutory
  2. reasonable
  3. immediate
  4. 6-month

Answer: reasonable

Keisham Meghachandra Singh case (2020): SC held: (a) Speaker must decide Tenth Schedule disqualification petitions within reasonable time (suggested 3 months), (b) Unreasonable delay undermines anti-defection law's deterrent effect, (c) Courts can intervene if delay causes irreversible harm (e.g., defector appointed Minister), (d) However, no fixed statutory timeframe in Tenth Schedule; Parliament urged to amend. Highlights implementation gap in anti-defection law; pending reforms to address Speaker bias and delayed decisions.

Topic Anti-Defection Law - Recent Judicial Clarifications
Exam Relevance Anti-defection law implementation question critical for UPSC Mains and current affairs exams
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