SC to Home: Give us antecedents of Cong MP Subba

Ambhoj Kumar Sinha, counsel for petitioner Birendra Nath Singh, contended that Mani Kumar Subba, originally called Mani Raj Limboo, is a ‘‘convict’’ in a 1971 murder case in Nepal and that he continues to be a registered voter in the Kathmandu constituency of Nepal. The petition claims Subba escaped from the medical ward of a jail and settled down in Assam.

In January last year, the SC had issued notices on the case to the Centre, the Home Ministry, CBI and Subba himself. But no replies were filed. ‘‘Ironically, Subba is a member of the parliamentary Standing Committee on Home Affairs,’’ Sinha said.

The Home Ministry was severely criticised by the apex bench for ‘‘passing the buck’’ to the EC. When the ministry counsel said that the EC should be issued notices in this regard, the CJI shot back, ‘‘It is very strange that the Home Ministry says that the EC should be asked to answer if he is a convict, if his conviction has reached finality in the Nepal court concerned, and if he has crossed over to India after that. Is it not the duty of the Home Ministry to keep the records?’’

The bench said in its order that this was ‘‘the last opportunity’’ being given to Subba and the Home Ministry to file affidavits ‘‘within two weeks.’’ The petition listed the cases against Subba, including the Rs 5,000 crore lottery scam for which he was indicted by the CAG. The petition said that Subba ‘‘is not an Indian national and in fact he is a Nepali national who after sufficient exercise of money and muscle power has been able to win the election’’.