Mangaluru: With the polling day in the constituency for the Lok Sabha Election less than a week away, political parties and its respective candidates have braced their sleeves up for the campaigning and are busy seeking votes and support from all corners.

As a part of the campaigning for his party, senior Congress leader and Member of Legislative Council (MLC) Ivan D’Souza on Friday reached out to Muslim voters at the Eidgah Masjid near St. Aloysius College of the city.

Soon after the Friday prayers at Eidgah Masjid where hundreds of Muslim students, Employees and Businessmen offer prayers, Ivan D’Souza started interacting with them.

Speaking to people, he sought support for Congress in the Lok Sabha Election. His fellowmen also distributed pamphlets of Congress manifesto among people.

Students and others also were seen clicking pictures with the leader while a few also discussed their issues with, to which Ivan assured prompt action.

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Lucknow (PTI): The Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court has restrained its order directing an FIR against Congress MP Rahul Gandhi in connection with the alleged dual citizenship controversy.

The court will now hear the parties on whether prior notice to the accused was legally required.

A bench of Justice Subhash Vidyarthi, which had in Friday in an oral order observed that prima facie cognisable offences appeared to be made out against Gandhi, and permitted the Uttar Pradesh government to hand over the probe to a central agency, said it would first examine the legal position on issuance of notice before passing any direction.

The development came after the bench, before signing its dictated order, came across a full court verdict mandating that notice be issued to the proposed accused in such matters.

The court noted that none of the counsel brought this legal requirement to its attention in the earlier hearing.

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The bench has posted the matter for April 20.

The order was passed on a plea filed by Karnataka-based BJP worker S Vignesh Shishir.

During the Friday proceedings, Deputy Solicitor General of India S B Pandey produced records of the Centre relating to the citizenship controversy, while government advocate V K Singh submitted on behalf of the state that the allegations prima facie disclosed cognisable offences.

After a hearing, the bench observed that material on record indicated that Gandhi had allegedly committed cognisable offences and that the matter warranted investigation.

In his petition, Shishir alleged that Gandhi was a UK citizen and had incorporated a company, M/s Backops Ltd, in August 2003, declaring his nationality as British.

The petitioner claimed that Gandhi submitted the company's annual returns in October 2005 and October 2006 listing his nationality as British, and that the firm was dissolved in February 2009.

He sought registration of an FIR against the former Congress president under provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, the Official Secrets Act, the Foreigners Act and the Passport Act.

The complaint was initially filed before a special MP/MLA court in Rae Bareli and was later transferred to Lucknow on the petitioner's request.