New Delhi, Feb. 27 -- The Union government opposed a petition calling for a lifetime ban on convicted lawmakers from contesting elections, arguing before the Supreme Court that such a disqualification, extending beyond the current six-year period after serving prison sentences, would be "unduly harsh".

The government, in an affidavit filed before the apex court, said that the contested provisions of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, are grounded in the principles of "proportionality and reasonability." It further stated that Parliament, as the sole law making body, has the discretion to determine the duration of disqualification or penalties for convicted lawmakers.

The plea in the top court filed by advocate Ashwini Kumar Upa...