AI or real video? Supreme Court stays disqualification of MLA Mukul Roy for defection to TMC

The Supreme Court on Friday stayed Calcutta High Court's recent decision to disqualify MLA Mukul Roy from the membership of West Bengal State legislature for defecting from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to the All India Trinamool Congress (TMC), the ruling political party in West Bengal

The bench of Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi said that the electronic evidence against Roy, which showed him attending a TMC press conference, has to be proved since there are Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools etc which are employed in present times.

"See there is AI etc, we don't know whose face etc is there. Electronic evidence has to be tested," CJI Kant said while staying Roy's defection.

The Court issued notice on Roy's to the West Bengal Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari and BJP MLA Ambika Roy, whose petitions led to Mukul Roy's disqualification in November 2025.

The Court asked the respondents to file their replies to Mukul Roy's plea within four weeks.

"Post the matter after four weeks," ordered the Court, as it stayed Roy's disqualification.

Roy was elected as a Member of the Legislative Assembly from Krishnanagar Uttar Constituency on BJP ticket. However, in June 2021, he allegedly joined the Trinamool Congress.

State Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari and BJP MLA Ambika Roy then sought his disqualification.

The Speaker of West Bengal Legislative Assembly in 2022 dismissed the plea seeking Roy's disqualification but a division bench of the High Court remanded the defection petition for fresh decision.

Later, the Speaker in June 2022 in a fresh decision ruled that there was no evidence to establish the defection.

Adhikari and Ambika Roy then moved the High Court, stating there was a record of a press conference to prove the defection.

In November 2025, a Division Bench of Justice Debangsu Basak and Justice Md. Shabbar Rashidi said that it was established that Mukul Roy had defected to Trinamool Congress on June 11, 2021.

Thus, it ruled that he had incurred disqualification under the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution.

"The respondent No. 2 is declared to have become disqualified in terms of the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution of India and the Rules of 1986 with effect from June 11, 2021," the Court ordered.

The Court had also set aside Roy's nomination as the chairman of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of the West Bengal Legislative Assembly.

Applying the test of preponderance of probabilities in the case against Roy, the High Court noted that he had not denied the assertions against him. The Court added that Adhikari had established through the pleadings available before the Speaker that Roy was present in a press conference held by Trinamool Congress.

"The respondent No. 2 has not denied the fact that the press conference was held by AITC and that he was present therein. He has also not denied the contents of the press conference as stated by the second writ petitioner. He has sought to explain his presence on the ground of the ill-health of his wife. The material fact as to his joining the AITC as stated in the press conference has not been denied by the respondent No. 2," it said.

During the hearing of Roy's plea today, the top court said that the electronic evidence against him was required to be proved.

Senior Advocate Gaurav Aggarwal, appearing for the respondents, opposed the grant of stay.

However, the Court proceeded to stay the High Court decision.