1 week ago
Supreme Court Revives Assam Congress Leader’s Election Challenge
Hafiz Rashid Ahmed Choudhury challenged Kripa Nath Mallah’s election victory in Assam.
A lower court had thrown out the challenge because of problems with paperwork.
The Supreme Court looked at those problems and disagreed with the lower court’s decision.
It said the wording used to confirm copies of documents had the same meaning.
It also said a mistake in one affidavit did not automatically cancel the whole case.
The Supreme Court therefore brought the election petition back.
The Gauhati High Court must now consider the petition again.
The Supreme Court has not decided whether Mallah actually won improperly.
It has only ruled that Choudhury’s case should be heard.
The Supreme Court restored Hafiz Rashid Ahmed Choudhury’s petition challenging BJP MP Kripa Nath Mallah’s 2024 Karimganj victory.
The Gauhati High Court had dismissed the petition after accepting Mallah’s challenge under Section 86 of the Representation of the People Act.
Mallah had cited improper attestation, a defect in the Form-25 affidavit and allegedly missing pages in the documents.
The Supreme Court ruled that “attested to be true copy” and “certified to be true copy” conveyed the same meaning.
It also held that the Form-25 affidavit defect did not necessarily require dismissal of the entire election petition.
- Who
- Congress candidate Hafiz Rashid Ahmed Choudhury and BJP MP Kripa Nath Mallah.
- What
- The Supreme Court restored Choudhury’s election petition challenging Mallah’s victory in the 2024 Lok Sabha election.
- Where
- Karimganj, Assam; the petition will return to the Gauhati High Court.
- When
- The Supreme Court issued its decision on Monday; the disputed election was held in 2024.
- Why
- The Supreme Court found that the cited document-attestation and Form-25 affidavit defects did not justify dismissing the entire petition.
Choudhury’s Position
Mallah’s Position
Whether the petition was properly filed
Choudhury’s Position
Choudhury argued that there was no prescribed attestation rule and that his signature accepting responsibility for the copies as true was sufficient.
Mallah’s Position
Mallah argued that the petition was not maintainable because copies were improperly attested, the Form-25 affidavit had a defect and documents allegedly lacked pages.
Effect of the paperwork defects
Choudhury’s Position
Choudhury argued that the defects should not prevent the election petition from being heard.
Mallah’s Position
Mallah sought dismissal of the petition under Section 86 of the Representation of the People Act on technical grounds.
Key facts
- Petitioner
- Hafiz Rashid Ahmed Choudhury, the Congress candidate
- Respondent
- Kripa Nath Mallah, the BJP candidate and elected MP
- Constituency
- Karimganj, Assam
- Election
- 2024 Lok Sabha elections
- Earlier ruling
- The Gauhati High Court dismissed the election petition on an attestation issue
- Supreme Court action
- The petition was restored to the Gauhati High Court’s files
- Key legal provisions
- Section 86 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, and the Form-25 affidavit
Quotes
Supreme Court bench
The bench comprising Justices J.B. Pardiwala and Vinod Chandran
“We restore the election petition to the files of the high court for consideration as required hereinabove”
telegraphindia.com
Sources
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