'Remedy Is To Approach EC': SC Rejects Meenakshi Natarajan's Plea Challenging Rejection Of RS Nomination

The Supreme Court on Friday rejected the plea filed by Congress leader Meenakshi Natarajan challenging the rejection of her nomination for the Rajya Sabha polls. The top court, while hearing the case, highlighted that approaching the Election Commission is the only remedy in this matter. The apex court asked the Congress leader to show a reference judgement where it intervened in a similar situation. However, the top court allowed her to raise the issue in an election petition filed in terms of the Representation of the People Act.

While appearing for the Congress leader, senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi pointed out that a candidate is supposed to disclose a criminal case that offers a minimum of two years in imprisonment. However, he added that the authorities only issued a summons to Natarajan in the present case. The senior lawyer asserted that the order passed by the returning officer was bizarre, adding that a level playing field was not provided by the poll body.

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"If this way a level playing field can be made non-level, there can be no election in the country," Singhvi submitted. While replying to his remarks, senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, for the rival candidate, pointed out that the right to contest the election is not a fundamental right, further pointing out that Article 32 cannot be invoked in this case.

Upon listening to both parties, a bench comprising Justice Prashant Kumar Mishra and Justice AS Chandurkar declined to intervene in the order passed by the returning officer.  "However erroneous the decision may be, once a nomination is rejected, the remedy ordinarily lies elsewhere. Is there any judgment of this Court where we have interfered at that stage?" the bench asked.

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While reacting to the order, Natarajan stated that she and the whole party will continue to fight to save the principles of the democracy. "I do not view this as a personal defeat at all. I believe this is a question posed to the entire system; it is a question regarding democracy itself--whether democracy will lose or win. That is our primary concern," she said.

As per a Madhya Pradesh official, Mahesh Kewat, the BJP candidate, filed a complaint with the returning officer alleging that the Congress candidate had not mentioned in her affidavit a case registered against her in Telangana, reported PTI.