x

Like our Facebook Page

   
Early Times Newspaper Jammu, Leading Newspaper Jammu
 
Breaking News :   New freight train service big step for Kashmir apple growers: LG Sinha | LG attends closing ceremony of ‘Jashn-e-Dal’ | Will take up restoration of Jmu-Sgr highway with Union Minister: CM Omar | Cloudburst triggers flash floods in Reasi, no casualties | Day 21: Vaishno Devi Yatra remains suspended | Fruit growers’ union delegation meets LG | Doda: Educational institutions reopen after 3 weeks | Fraudster impersonating LG’s duty officer held in Rs 50 lakh scam: CBK | PM Modi lays foundation stone of projects worth around Rs 40,000 crore in Bihar | PM Inaugurates 16th armed forces’ conference at Eastern Command HQ | ITR filing deadline ends | DC Budgam calls for stronger enforcement & rehabilitation measures | DYSSO Samba launches major Inter-Zonal Sports tournament | Modi’s Governance: Gujarat Model to Bharatiya Model | Safety of Indians in America | Celebrating National Hindi Diwas | Parcel Train | FICCI FLO JKL rolls out Phase-4 of flood relief efforts in Jammu | Kuch Din Toh Aaiyein Ladakh Mein: LG Kavinder appeals in Navi Mumbai | Give your best to steer our nation ahead in growth & development: DyCM | MLA Sham Lal Sharma Pays Tribute to Sir M. Visvesvaraya on Engineers Day | Power shut down in several areas | Parcel cargo train from Kashmir to Adarsh Nagar Delhi flagged off | Javid Dar reviews status of NH-44 restoration | Only Aadhaar-authenticated users can book online general tickets in first 15 mins from Oct 1: Railways | DC Srinagar convenes DLSCC meeting | MLA Poonch, Ajaz Ahmed Jan offer condolences | Pakistan's terror nexus exposed again at UNSC: Gaurav | Randhawa reviews preparations at Bawe Wali Mata Mandir | Itoo flags off Dental Awareness Rally on Oral health hygiene | MLA Arvind Gupta inaugurates long-pending drain work at Rajpura | Boy injured in landmine blast in Anantnag, dies | Indian Army's first exclusive freight train on USBRL marks breakthrough | Punjab police busts cross-border weapon smuggling module with links to Pak | WPI inflation turns positive after 2 months, at 0.52% in August | SC to pass order on Sept 26 in suo motu case over lack of functional CCTVs in police stations | On Engineer's Day GCET Jammu inaugurates two-week induction programme | Crackdown on illegal mining continue on 2nd day | Ramban police recovers 30 lost mobile phones | Ravinder visits rain affected areas of Sunderbani, seeks relief, restorations on war footing | AIIMS Bathinda reaffirms zero tolerance for unethical practices | Indian Army organised interaction with prominent locals, media at Samote | JKEDI launches 3rd batch of Management Development Programs | GDC Bishnah celebrates Hindi Diwas in collaboration with J&K Rashtriya Bhasha Prachar Samiti | YCET conducts Induction Program | CCI raise serious issue of infrastructure crises | GCOE Jammu celebrates Hindi Diwas | MCM celebrates Hindi Diwas with fervour | Dogra Degree College celebrates Hindi Diwas | IIM Jammu hosts valedictory xeremony of Management Development Program on Corporate Governance | 3 cab drivers booked for violating traffic advisory, overcharging | Doda Police urges public to combat fake news, misinformation | PM Modi at 75: A legacy of vision, valor, Nation-Building: Rohiin Chandan | IRCS J&K provides relief material to flood-affected | JKAACL Jammu organizes one day symposium | Principal Secretary, Culture inaugurates hindi Pakhwada at K.L. Saigal Hall | SP North Vivek Shekhar Sharma releases devotional bhajan “Lad Fadeya Mahamai Da” | IGNOU Jammu successfully concludes Swachhata Pakhwada, reaffirming commitment to cleanliness | Back Issues  
 
news details
Harsh Dev challenges Assembly Election of Chenani constituency
Election Tribunal issues notices to ECI, RO, J&K Govt, Mankotia, others
11/30/2024 10:46:11 PM
Early Times Report
JAMMU, Nov 30: Hon'ble Justice Rajneesh Oswal today directed issuance of notices to Election Commission of India, Chief Electoral officer J&K, UT of J&K, Home Department, Returning Officer Chenani Assembly constituency, returned candidate Balwant Mankotia besides several others including the Returned candidate from the said constituency in an Election Petition filed by the JKNPP India candidate Harsh Dev Singh who challenged the said election and sought declaration of the said election as null and void and setting aside the same. A battery of lawyers including Aseem Sawhney, Tehsina Bukhari, Raj Pratap Singh, Mohd Kashiv, Mohit Mankotia, Yasin Tak and Pallav Sharma appeared for the petitioner.
Arguing the case for the petitioner, Aseem Sawhney stated that the Chenani assembly election had been vitiated due to large scale corrupt practices, bribery, undue influence, use of religion for votes, promoting hatred amongst classes on ground of religion, false and mischievous publications, dis-information, use of govt servants and govt machinery in elections, bias and prejudice of tainted officers in the conduct of elections, concealment of material facts in the Affidavit beside improper acceptance of the Affidavit of Returned Candidate by the RO alleged to have given overt and covert support to the Returned Candidate.
Pointing towards the faulty Affidavit submitted by the Returned Candidate, the petitioner said that despite defects of "substantial nature" as enumerated by ECI and concealment of material facts therein including non-disclosure of complete details of Assets and Liabilities, suppression of information regarding dues to govt, the nomination form of the Returned candidate was liable to be rejected. Quoting section 100(1)(d)(1) of RP Act, Harsh Dev maintained that the improper acceptance of the nomination form of the Returned candidate which had substantial defects as stated "ECI in guidelines and Apex Court rulings" making it a faulty, defective and incomplete affidavit and hence the election was liable to be set aside.
The lawyers for petitioner further argued that the bribery of voters in Chenani Election was unprecedented in the historyof Indian elections wherein returned candidate and his supporters distributedsarees, Suits, Umbrellas, T-shirts, under garments, bags besides cash andliquor to the voters on a massive scale. Several complaints in this regard fellflat with the concerned authorities maintaining a cold silence and directly andindirectly supporting the official BJP candidate i.e. the returned candidate. Therespondent no.5 to 9 i.e. police officers and RO openly assisted thereturned candidate and facilitated free movement of cash, liquor, sarees suits T-shirts and bagsby them while intimidating, threatening, persecuting and arresting JKNPP Indiaworkers/supporters. That the workers of JKNPP India were threatenedof physical elimination by the BJP candidate of the Chenani assemblyconstituency who further assured his workers thatnothing would happen to them if they chopped the heads of Panthersworkers. Repeated complaints of bribery, corrupt practices and threats madetorespondents ECI/CEO J&K in this regard were downplayed with no action whatsoever taken by the concerned authorities, asserted the petitioner.
The Petitioner, Harsh Dev Singh who is also a practising lawyer, had taken the plea that the Returned candidate resorted to 'Undue influence' as defined in Section 123 RP Act by issuing threats of injury, by using religion and promoting hatred amongst classes on grounds of religion. The petitioner while referring to some video interviews of returned candidate and his social media posts claimed that a malicious, highly malevolent and pernicious vilification campaign was launched against him by the returned candidate and his personal character and conduct was called in question to prejudicially affect his electoral prospects thereby attracting the provisions of Section 123(4) of RP Act. The petitioner said that he was not only dubbed as anti-national, pro- Pakistani, member of Gupkar gang, Pakistan sponsored candidate, supporter of Hijbul Mujahiddin and Palestnian Mujahiddin, 'terrorist gang' but his (petitioner's) blood and DNA was also questioned and challenged. Such false malicious propaganda and character assassination of the petitioner unleashed on a massive scale completed altered the political narrative in the constituency thereby most prejudicially affecting the Election results against the petitioner and in favour of the returned candidate. The returned candidate all along gave the impression through his social media posts and interviews that he(returned candidate) was a nationalist and petitioner as anti-national and supporter of terrorists.
Further, the petitioner claimed that threats of sexual assault and molestation of mothers and sisters of opposition workers and voters were given by the agents/workers of BJP which had been duly recorded and submitted in the Court in the form of a pen drive.
It was further argued that several govt. employees and officers were deployed to openly campaign for the BJP candidate whose campaign photographs and social media posts were also openly circulated but no cognizance taken by a biased administration. The petitioner stated that the hired media including 'JK Media', 'Digital Reporter', 'Khabar Jammu Kashmir' and other local media supported the vilification campaign of the BJP candidate directly describing the petitioner as 'terror supporter', 'anti-national' besides giving their judgements even prior to the conduct of Elections in favour of the BJP candidate.
  Share This News with Your Friends on Social Network  
  Comment on this Story  
 
 
 
Early Times Android App
STOCK UPDATE
  
BSE Sensex
NSE Nifty
 
CRICKET UPDATE
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
   
Home About Us Top Stories Local News National News Sports News Opinion Editorial ET Cetra Advertise with Us ET E-paper
 
 
J&K RELATED WEBSITES
J&K Govt. Official website
Jammu Kashmir Tourism
JKTDC
Mata Vaishnodevi Shrine Board
Shri Amarnath Ji Shrine Board
Shri Shiv Khori Shrine Board
UTILITY
Train Enquiry
IRCTC
Matavaishnodevi
BSNL
Jammu Kashmir Bank
State Bank of India
PUBLIC INTEREST
Passport Department
Income Tax Department
JK CAMPA
JK GAD
IT Education
Web Site Design Services
EDUCATION
Jammu University
Jammu University Results
JKBOSE
Kashmir University
IGNOU Jammu Center
SMVDU