Supreme Court to examine ‘material’ against activists, extends their house arrest till Sept 19
New Delhi : The Supreme Court Monday extended the house arrest of the five activists held in connection with the investigation into the Bhima-Koregaon violence till September 19, when the court will hear the matter next. Five activists — P Varavara Rao, Vernon Gonsalves, Arun Ferreira, Sudha Bharadwaj and Gautam Navlakha — were arrested last month for their alleged Maoist link.
A bench headed by Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra extended the date after the government said it would produce the case diary and other evidence related to the investigation on that day. “Every criminal investigation is based on allegations; We have to see whether there is some material,” the bench said. The bench said if there were some grave lapses, then it may consider the prayers like an investigation by a SIT in the case.
During the hearing, the government objected to the Supreme Court’s hearing in the case. Questioning the way the petitioners directly approached the apex court, the government’s counsel said, “Every case can’t come to the Supreme Court. It is a wrong procedure. They have options to approach the lower court, high courts or even other legal options to seek redressal. What is it that creates doubts in their minds that lower judicial forum won’t hear them? They have not said that courts below are not hearing them.”
Appearing for the Maharashtra government, Additional Solicitor General Tushar Mehta said the petitioners were strangers to the matter and could not be allowed to intervene in a criminal case. Lawyers appearing for petitioners Romila Thapar and others countered this, saying that families of some of the victims had also filed affidavits and “this was now as good as a petition by people under house arrest”. On this, CJI Misra said that the court entertained the plea on the foundation of liberty. “Issues like independent enquiry, etc, comes at a later stage,” he said.
Appearing for the petitioners, Abhishek Manu Singhvi said that they had approached the Supreme Court as they needed a court-monitored investigation in the case.
Several people including historian Romila Thapar had filed a petition in the Supreme Court last month challenging the arrests of the activists.
courtesy : indianexpress.com
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CM Siddaramaiah alleges ‘criminal conspiracy’ in Sringeri recount, vows legal action
Bengaluru (PTI): Alleging a “criminal conspiracy” by BJP candidate D N Jeevaraj in the Sringeri Assembly poll recounting, Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah on Tuesday said the outcome was manipulated after valid postal ballot votes in favour of Congress leader T D Raje Gowda were tampered with during the recounting process.
Following a Karnataka High Court order on an election petition filed by Jeevaraj, challenging Raje Gowda’s election, the reverification and recounting were conducted on Saturday.
After the reverification and recount of postal ballots for the Sringeri Assembly constituency, votes polled in favour of Raje Gowda were reduced by 255, the returning officer said.
A report on the matter has been submitted to the Election Commission of India for further action, the officer added.
Congress leader Raje Gowda had won the 2023 Assembly polls from Sringeri by 201 votes, defeating his nearest rival Jeevaraj.
Addressing a press conference in Bengaluru, Siddaramaiah said the High Court had directed the recounting of postal ballots and that irregularities were noticed during the exercise conducted on May 2.
“This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” Siddaramaiah said, alleging that valid votes cast in favour of Raje Gowda were altered after being accepted by counting agents of all parties, including Congress, BJP, and JD(S).
He claimed that during the recounting of postal ballots, 255 votes were initially accepted as valid by all agents but were later tampered with by subordinate officials.
“There is a second mark on the votes polled in favour of Raje Gowda. They had accepted these as valid votes. Subsequently, another mark was made by officials. This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” he said.
When asked who was behind the alleged conspiracy, the CM replied, “It was hatched by Jeevaraj and others. It is planned.”
Siddaramaiah further alleged that the returning officer acted improperly by declaring the result despite the presence of an Election Commission observer during the recounting.
“Immediately after the counting, the returning officer announced the result. He should not have done so; this is against the law,” he said.
He pointed out that Raje Gowda had originally won by 201 votes, but after the recounting, the BJP candidate was declared the winner by 52 votes.
“The BJP has committed a criminal act of conspiracy. This is not vote chori but vote dacoity,” he alleged.
The CM said a police complaint had already been filed by Raje Gowda’s election agent, Sudhir Kumar, and emphasised the need for electoral integrity.
“We want transparency and free and fair elections. That is what our Constitution mandates,” he added.
Stating that the government would pursue legal remedies, Siddaramaiah said, “We are preparing an appeal challenging the returning officer’s announcement in a court of law.”
Responding to a separate query on elections in other states, the CM said there appeared to be an anti-incumbency factor in West Bengal, while results in Tamil Nadu were “surprising,” adding that Vijay’s party was emerging as the largest there.
Following the victory of party candidates in Bagalkote and Davanagere South, Siddaramaiah expressed confidence about future electoral prospects in Karnataka.
“Even in 2028, we will win the Assembly elections. We will come back,” the CM said.
Siddaramaiah added that he would order a forensic examination into the alleged tampering of postal ballots.
