Court discharges AAP legislator in 2015 election campaign case
New Delhi, May 10: A Delhi court has discharged Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) legislator Naresh Balyan in a 2015 case related to the violation of the model code of conduct during the campaigning for the assembly election.
Balyan was booked as he organised a meeting that began earlier than its scheduled time as AAP convenor Arvind Kejriwal had arrived early.
Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Samar Vishal, in the order delivered on Thursday, discharged Uttam Nagar Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) Balyan from the case filed under Section 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
The Delhi Police had registered a First Information Report (FIR) on January 18, 2015 on a complaint of a member of the flying squad supervising the elections who alleged that the meeting started before the scheduled time of 3 p.m.
However, police did not attach or file any corresponding complaint of the public servant in its chargesheet.
Police said the meeting was to be attended by Arvind Kejriwal and as he came earlier than the scheduled time, the meeting began early. Since the organiser of the meeting was Naresh Balyan, he was made accused in the case.
The defence counsel pointed out that the chargesheet had been filed under Section 188 of the IPC but there was no corresponding complaint of the public servant whose order was allegedly violated.
"Without that complaint, the court is not even empowered to take cognizance of the offence, what to talk of trial of the accused," the court said.
"It seems that police has casually filed this chargesheet without observing the legal principles and without complying with the legal requirement. The offence alleged is violation of an order of a public servant but no such order is placed on record along with the chargesheet."
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EC reaction to Kharge's letter to INDIA bloc partners 'inappropriate and unwarranted', says Gehlot
Jaipur (PTI): The Election Commission's reaction to a letter by Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge to INDIA bloc partners expressing concern over delays in releasing voter turnout figures for the first two poll phases was "completely inappropriate and unwarranted", former Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot said on Saturday.
The commission on Friday, in a response to Kharge's letter, called it an attempt to push a biased narrative under the guise of seeking clarifications.
In a post in Hindi on X, Gehlot said, "The language of the letter of the Election Commission, which came on the legitimate questions raised by @kharge ji, seems more like that of a political party than a constitutional institution. Instead of working with its responsibility, the Election Commission is seen standing with one party in these elections and that is creating doubts in the minds of the common people."
He added that such a reaction is not good for the Election Commission's image.
"It is surprising that the Election Commission is reacting to the internal discussions between parties but is not even taking cognisance of the complaints raised by the opposition parties to the Election Commission. In Rajasthan, the Congress filed more than 20 complaints but it did not even issue notices on them," Gehlot added.
Kharge on Saturday said it is surprising that the poll authority chose to respond to a letter he wrote to INDIA bloc leaders but ignored several other complaints he raised directly to it.
In a letter addressed to the chief election commissioner and other election commissioners, he said the poll panel is showing no urgency in dealing with "blatantly communal and casteist" statements being made by leaders of the ruling party.
Kharge, in his response, said it was an open letter clearly addressed to the Congress' partners and not the commission.
"It is surprising that the Election Commission of India wanted to respond to this letter while ignoring several other complaints given directly to it. I have certain misgivings about the language of the letter but I will not press on that issue as I understand the pressures they are working under," Kharge said in his letter to the poll authority on Saturday.
He said the poll authority's letter, on one hand, says the commission respects citizens' right to ask questions and, on the other, "threatens citizens in the form of an advise to exercise caution".
