New Delhi: Convicted Congress leader Rashid Masood today became the first MP to lose his seat after the Supreme Court struck down a provision that protects a convicted lawmaker from disqualification on the ground of pendency of appeal in higher courts.
66-year-old Masood was held guilty in a case of corruption and other offences in September.
His conviction was the first after the Supreme Court struck down a provision in
the electoral law that provided immunity to MPs and MLAs from immediate disqualification.
Sources said the notification formally announcing a vacancy in the Rajya Sabha following Masood's disqualification was issued by Rajya Sabha Secretary General Shumsher K Sheriff.
A copy of the notification has been sent to the Election Commission for necessary action, the sources said.
