Punjab and Haryana High Court seeks EC clarification on circular to initiate action

Saurabh Malik

Chandigarh, October 12

The Punjab and Haryana High Court has asked the Election Commission of India (ECI) to specify whether it has issued any circular or instructions to district electoral or returning officers to initiate prosecution under Section 125-A of the Representation of the People Act for filing false information in an affidavit.

Setting two-week deadline for the purpose, the Bench of Justice Raj Mohan Singh and Justice Harpreet Singh Brar also ruled that conviction under Section 125-A was not a ground for a candidate’s disqualification from contesting legislative assembly election. It was also held that the filing of false affidavit attracted punishment up to six months and fine. However, it did not affect the election result in any manner.

FALSE INFO IN AFFIDAVIT Says conviction under Section 125-A not a ground for a candidate’s disqualification from contesting Assembly election

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The Bench was hearing a petition seeking directions to the ECI and other respondents to disqualify KuldeepVats from the membership of the Haryana Legislative Assembly from 2014 till date. Issuing notice of motion for November first week to the ECI only, the Bench asserted: “Before passing an appropriate order, the respondent may ventilate its stand in this context and file reply including a specific response as to whether the Election Commission of India has issued any circular/instructions to the district electoral officer or returning officer to initiate prosecution under Section 125-A of the Representation of the People Act on the ground of filing false information in the affidavit.

The direction came on the petition by Naresh Kumar for also recovering all pecuniary and monetary benefits from the MLA, along with annual interest of 18 per cent for “intentionally furnishing false information regarding his academic qualification in the affidavit filed by him, along with nomination papers for contesting elections of the Haryana Legislative Assembly in 2014 and 2019”. Directions were also sought for registration of a criminal case against him for “committing the offences of cheating, forgery, perjury and breach of trust”.

In its three-page order, the Bench asserted filing of false information in the affidavit, along with nomination papers, would entail prosecution as provided under Section 125-A of the Act. “However, if furnishing of false information in the affidavit is proved and a candidate is prosecuted under Section 125A, even then it is not a ground for setting aside the election or for earning disqualification. The conviction under Section 125-A has not been included in the list of offences mentioned under Section 8 of the Act, which provides for qualification. Thus, it is clear from a perusal of the relevant provisions of the Act that conviction under Section 125-A is not a ground for disqualification of the candidate from contesting Legislative Assembly election”.