CM Siddaramaiah prosecution case: HC directs special court to defer its proceedings till August 29
Bengaluru, Aug 19: The Karnataka High Court on Monday directed the special court for people's representatives, slated to hear complaints against Chief Minister Siddaramaiah in the alleged Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) site allotment 'scam', to defer its proceedings till the next date of hearing on August 29.
"No injunction has been granted," said Justice M Nagaprasanna, who heard a writ petition filed by the Chief Minister challenging the legality of the August 16 order of the Governor, who accorded sanction against him under Section 17A of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, and Section 218 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Suraksha Sanhita, 2023.
In the petition, the Chief Minister submitted that the sanction order was issued without due application of mind, in violation of statutory mandates, and contrary to constitutional principles, including the advice of the Council of Ministers, which is binding under Article 163 of the Constitution of India.
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Siddaramaiah contended that the Governor’s decision is legally unsustainable, procedurally flawed, and motivated by extraneous considerations, and thus, he has preferred the writ petition seeking to quash the impugned order amongst other reliefs.
The Governor had issued the order after Pradeepkumar S P, T J Abraham and Snehamayi Krishna had submitted to him petitions requesting sanction for prosecution of the Chief Minister in connection with the alleged irregularities in the allotment of alternative sites to his wife Parvathi by MUDA.
Abraham and Krishna have moved the special court for public representatives, and the case was slated to come up on Tuesday and Wednesday.
“Since the matter is being heard by this court and the pleadings are yet to get complete, till the next date of hearing, the concerned court shall defer its proceedings,” Justice Nagaprasanna said.
Senior advocate and Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi and the Solicitor General of India Tushar Mehta appeared on behalf of the Chief Minister and Governor, respectively.
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Sanjay Raut demands re-election, alleges irregularities in EVMs during Maharashtra polls
Mumbai, Nov 25: Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut on Monday demanded a re-election in Maharashtra using ballot papers, claiming there were irregularities with the electronic voting machines (EVMs).
Talking to reporters, Raut alleged several complaints about EVMs malfunctioning and questioned the integrity of the recently held elections.
The BJP-led Mahayuti won 230 out of 288 seats in the assembly elections, while the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi managed 46 seats, with Shiv Sena (UBT) winning just 20 out of 95 seats it contested.
"We have received nearly 450 complaints regarding EVMs. Despite raising objections repeatedly, no action has been taken on these issues. How can we say these elections were conducted fairly? Hence, I demand that the results be set aside and elections be held again using ballot papers," Raut said.
Citing some instances, he said a candidate in Nashik reportedly received only four votes despite having 65 votes from his family, while in Dombivli, discrepancies were found in EVM tallies, and election officials refused to acknowledge the objections.
The Sena (UBT) leader also questioned the credibility of the landslide victories of some candidates, saying, "What revolutionary work have they done to receive more than 1.5 lakh votes? Even leaders who recently switched parties have become MLAs. This raises suspicions. For the first time, a senior leader like Sharad Pawar has expressed doubts about EVMs, which cannot be ignored."
Asked about the MVA's poor performance in the elections, Raut rejected the idea of blaming a single individual.
"We fought as a united MVA. Even a leader like Sharad Pawar, who commands immense respect in Maharashtra, faced defeat. This shows that we need to analyse the reasons behind the failure. One of the reasons is EVM irregularities and the misuse of the system, unconstitutional practices, and even judicial decisions left unresolved by Justice Chandrachud," he said.
Raut stressed that though internal differences might have existed within the MVA, the failure was collective.
He also accused the Mahayuti of conducting the elections in an unfair manner.
"I cannot call the elections fair given the numerous reports of discrepancies in EVMs, mismatched numbers, and vote irregularities across the state," Raut said.
