New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Wednesday issued notice to BJP MP Bansuri Swaraj on AAP leader Somnath Bharti’s petition challenging her election to the Lok Sabha on grounds of alleged corrupt practices.
Justice Manmeet Pritam Singh Arora asked Swaraj to file her reply within 30 days.
Meanwhile, the court deleted former AAP minister Raaj Kumar Anand, who contested the 2024 Sabha polls on Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) ticket but joined BJP after the results, from the array of parties on the ground that no cause of action was made out against him.
Swaraj emerged victorious marking a significant moment as the BJP fielded Sushma Swaraj’s daughter for the first time.
Bharti filed an election petition under Sections 80 and 81 of the Representation of the People Act, contesting Swaraj’s victory as a Member of the House of the People from the New Delhi constituency.
The petition, as reported by PTI, alleges ‘corrupt practices’ committed by Swaraj, her election agent, and others with her consent during the May 25, 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
“On the election day, that is, May 5, 2024, the petitioner, during his visits to different booths across New Delhi Parliamentary Constituency, was shocked to see that booth agents of the respondent no. 1 had her pamphlets displaying her ballot number, photo, election symbol and photo of PM Sri Narendra Modi and was showing the same to the voters who had lined up in the booth to vote and asking them to vote for Ballot no.1 and such an act certainly qualifies to be a corrupt practice.
This was also reported to the respondent no. 3 (returning officer) but all in vain,” the plea claimed.
