SC stays Karnataka High Court order nullifying Congress MLA’s election
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Tuesday stayed a decision of the Karnataka High Court that had nullified the election of Congress MLA K.Y. Nanjegowda from the Malur Assembly constituency in the 2023 polls.
However, a Bench of Justices Surya Kant and Joymala Bagchi did not interfere with the direction to the Election Commission of India (ECI) regarding recounting of votes but ordered the poll body to keep the revised results in a sealed cover.
“Issue notice. In the meantime, the operation of the impugned order of the Karnataka High Court, to the extent it set aside the election of the appellant (Nanjegowda), shall remain stayed. Resultantly, the appellant shall continue as the elected Member of the Legislative Assembly,” ordered the Justice Kant-led Bench.
However, the ECI is directed to comply with the directions to the extent of recounting of votes and submit the result in a sealed cover, and the recounting results shall not be disclosed without the permission of the Supreme Court, it added.
In an order passed on September 16, the Karnataka High Court had nullified Nanjegowda’s election but granted him 30-day timeline to file an appeal before the Supreme Court. If the apex court does not give any relief, the Congress legislator will lose his seat, clarified a bench of Justice R. Devdas, while pronouncing the verdict on a petition filed by the defeated BJP candidate K.S. Manjunath Gowda.
Manjunath Gowda has moved the Karnataka High Court, seeking a recount of votes polled in the Assembly elections, as the margin between him and Nanjegowda was just 248.
The BJP candidate had claimed that counting officials called him on the phone and said that he had won the elections. But later, it was announced that the Congress candidate had won by a margin of 248 votes. Hence, he had moved the Karnataka HC, seeking a recount of the votes polled.
The election petition was presented under Section 81 of the Representation of the People’s Act, 1951, and Rule 4 of the Karnataka Election Petition Rules.
Manjunath Gowda has prayed the Karnataka High Court to call for records, documents, videos, computers, including the one where the rejection order was drafted, and all further material and data regarding the election, including the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) and the postal ballots, the videography and computations relating to elections, and to hold them in custody.
The petition further demanded to set aside the election of Nanjegowda on the grounds mentioned under Section 100 (1) (d), (i), (ii), (iii) and (iv) as enumerated therein and to declare him as the elected candidate from the Malur constituency.