PTIThe Delhi High Court on Tuesday said a challenge to the election of Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) president Chirag Paswan from the Hajipur Lok Sabha seat in Bihar should be mounted in the Patna High Court, as it listed for hearing an election petition on the issue on August 28. "How is this maintainable in this high court? The constituency is in the state of Bihar. It is better you withdraw (the plea) and go to the jurisdictional high court," Justice Vikas Mahajan told the petitioner's counsel.
"This court will not have the jurisdiction," the judge orally said during the hearing.
In her plea, the petitioner has claimed that she was a victim of an alleged sexual assault at the "insistence" of Prince Raj and his associates, including Paswan, his cousin who did not disclose this "criminal antecedent" at the time of filing his nomination for the Lok Sabha polls.
Informing that an FIR was already registered here in 2021 in relation to the alleged sexual assault, the plea said filing a false affidavit or concealing any information in the affidavit with respect to criminal cases violates section 125A of the Representation Of the People Act and is punishable with six-month imprisonment.
Advocate Sidhant Kumar, the counsel for the Election Commission (EC), asserted that the election petition was not maintainable here in terms of the Representation of the People Act as the election was held in Bihar.
Additional Solicitor General Chetan Sharma, appearing in the matter on behalf of the Centre, further argued that under the law, only a voter of the constituency or a candidate can file an election petition to assail an election and the petitioner did not fall in either of the categories.
"The Act is clear. Her locus is in question. You have to be a voter in the constituency or you have to be a candidate.... Merit will come later, first the petitioner has to get over the hurdle," he contended.
The petitioner's counsel sought time from the court to further address the issue of the court's jurisdiction to deal with the plea on the next date of hearing.
"This court will not have the jurisdiction," the judge orally said during the hearing.
In her plea, the petitioner has claimed that she was a victim of an alleged sexual assault at the "insistence" of Prince Raj and his associates, including Paswan, his cousin who did not disclose this "criminal antecedent" at the time of filing his nomination for the Lok Sabha polls.
Informing that an FIR was already registered here in 2021 in relation to the alleged sexual assault, the plea said filing a false affidavit or concealing any information in the affidavit with respect to criminal cases violates section 125A of the Representation Of the People Act and is punishable with six-month imprisonment.
Advocate Sidhant Kumar, the counsel for the Election Commission (EC), asserted that the election petition was not maintainable here in terms of the Representation of the People Act as the election was held in Bihar.
Additional Solicitor General Chetan Sharma, appearing in the matter on behalf of the Centre, further argued that under the law, only a voter of the constituency or a candidate can file an election petition to assail an election and the petitioner did not fall in either of the categories.
"The Act is clear. Her locus is in question. You have to be a voter in the constituency or you have to be a candidate.... Merit will come later, first the petitioner has to get over the hurdle," he contended.
The petitioner's counsel sought time from the court to further address the issue of the court's jurisdiction to deal with the plea on the next date of hearing.
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