Chargesheet not filed in cases against leaders even after 10 years: Supreme

- The right of the government to withdraw hate cases also requires the approval of the High Court

- About 200 cases pending against MPs and MLAs, not just confiscation of assets: Supreme

- We do not want to undermine the confidence of the investigating agencies, the Supreme Court clarified that we will issue a detailed order on the whole matter

New Delhi: The Supreme Court has told state governments that the government has the right to withdraw hate cases and the court is not against it. However, it should be scrutinized by the High Court in the states where there are cases. The apex court also expressed concern over the delay in disposal of pending criminal cases against MPs and MLAs and asked the Center to provide appropriate assistance.

A bench of Supreme Court Chief Justice NV Ramanna and Justice DY Chandrachud as well as Suryakant said a detailed order would be issued in the matter. He also clarified that in such cases, we will not issue any order or give any advice to the investigating agencies like CBI or ED. As it will affect the morale of these agencies. However these agencies should ensure that investigations are completed more quickly.

The apex court said that as many as 200 such cases were pending in the courts, adding that even the report against Mr. Tushar Mehta was "surprising". In such cases, confiscation of assets alone will not work.

A public interest litigation has been filed in the Supreme Court by Ashwini Upadhyay seeking that if any MP or MLA is found guilty in the cases against him, he should be barred from contesting elections for life. At the same time, speedy disposal of such cases has been demanded.