New Delhi, March 29: Two petitions heard by the Supreme Court today turned the glare on criminalisation and communalisation of politics as parties continued to release candidate lists for the elections.

The first public interest litigation sought to ban criminals from contesting polls. The second pleaded that parties assembling in the name of religion — termed “communal groupings” by the petitioner — be banned.

But the court directed that the first PIL be amended as its plea that the provision of the Representation of People’s Act disqualifying a person convicted for two years imprisonment be struck down would enable “all the convicts to contest elections”. This would be “disastrous” for the democracy.

While pleading that the provisions of the Act be made “more stringent”, advocate Lily Thomas had urged that “any conviction, irrespective of the length of the sentence” should result in disqualification. This, she had contended, would be possible only if the provision were struck down.

A person is disqualified from contesting only if he/she is convicted for at least two years under Section 8 of the Act.

The person is barred for six years from the date of release from jail.

The court has given Thomas time till April 2 to amend her petition.

In case of the second PIL, the court directed . Kunju, former editor of fortnightly magazine Caravan, to file by April 19 the details of the memorandum of association of over 23 political parties so that it could examine whether they should be banned.

The parties include the Indian Union Muslim League, the Shiromani Akali Dal, the Akhil Bharat Hindu Mahasabha, the All India Christian Democratic and Backward Peoples Party, the Bharatiya Hindu Sena, the All India Muslim Forum, the Kerala Muslim League, the Hindu Samaj Party and the Islamic Party.

The petitioner contended that Section 29 of the RPA empowered the Election Commission to de-recognise parties which “do not owe true faith and allegiance to the Constitution and to the principles of socialism, secularism and democracy”.

He alleged that “these political parties, assembled in the name of religion, are trying to convert the religious Indian voters into communal persons and thereby destroying the quality of democracy and secularism”.

The petitions were heard by a bench comprising Chief Justice V.. Khare, Justice G.P. Mathur and Justice S.H. Kapadia.