Lawmakers in parliament and state legislatures are not immune from prosecution in bribery cases, the Supreme Court said today in a landmark verdict by a seven-judge bench led by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud.

The verdict set aside a 1998 judgment in which a five-member Constitution bench had upheld the immunity for lawmakers in cases where MPs or MLAs take bribes for a speech or a vote in the House.

Bribery, the court said, is not protected by parliamentary privileges and the interpretation of the 1998 verdict is contrary to Articles 105 and 194 of the Constitution.

Kiara Advani and Sidharth Malhotra have a massive fanbase and their fans have flooded the comments section every time they’ve shared a new picture of them from the ongoing celebrations.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi praised the Supreme Court’s verdict today that said MPs and MLAs do not enjoy immunity from prosecution for taking bribe to make a speech or cast a vote in the legislature.

A seven-judge Constitution bench headed by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud unanimously overruled the 1998 verdict delivered by a five-judge bench in the JMM bribery case, by which MPs and MLAs were granted immunity from prosecution for taking bribe to make a speech or vote in the legislature.

“Swagatam. A great judgment by the Supreme Court which will ensure clean politics and deepen people’s faith in the system,” PM Modi said in the post.

SWAGATAM!

A great judgment by the Hon’ble Supreme Court which will ensure clean politics and deepen people’s faith in the system.https://t.co/GqfP3PMxqz

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) March 4, 2024

Delivering the verdict, Chief Justice Chandrachud said bribery is not protected by parliamentary privileges and the interpretation of the 1998 verdict is contrary to Articles 105 and 194 of the Constitution.

Articles 105 and 194 deal with the powers and privileges of MPs and MLAs in parliament and legislative assemblies.