The Delhi High Court on Wednesday refused to entertain a petition challenging promises made by political parties to distribute cash to voters ahead of the upcoming Delhi Assembly elections..The plea was filed by retired Delhi High Court Justice SN Dhingra. He argued that such activities not only violate electoral laws but also infringe upon the fundamental rights of voters and severely hinder the free and fair conduct of the election.However, a Bench of Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyay and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela noted that a similar petition is already pending before the Supreme Court with regard to freebies offered by political parties and hence, the High Court cannot entertain a similar plea simultaneously. "You approach the Supreme Court then, implead yourself. The same matter is pending there if freebies are legal and if freebies is corrupt practices. We will not entertain this petition at this juncture to avoid parallel proceedings," the Court told the petitioner.The Court then permitted the petitioner to withdraw the petition with the liberty to move the Supreme Court or High Court later. .The plea sought the establishment of monitoring mechanisms to ensure a free and fair election in Delhi..The plea referred to AAP's “Mukhyamantri Mahila Samman Yojana,” BJP's “Mahila Samridhi Yojna,” and Congress' “Pyari Didi Yojna,” through which the parties have promised cash benefits to voters if they come to power.It was argued that these actions violate provisions under the Representation of the People Act, 1951, specifically Section 123(1) (Corrupt Practices), Section 127A (Unauthorized Election Materials), and Section 170 & 171 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (Offences of Bribery and Undue Influence During Elections).It was also claimed that through these schemes, the parties are collecting personal and electoral data of voters without their explicit consent, in violation of their right to privacy..The petition was filed through advocates Amit Grover, Siddhartha Borgohain and Harshvardhan Sharma..[Read live coverage below]
The Delhi High Court on Wednesday refused to entertain a petition challenging promises made by political parties to distribute cash to voters ahead of the upcoming Delhi Assembly elections..The plea was filed by retired Delhi High Court Justice SN Dhingra. He argued that such activities not only violate electoral laws but also infringe upon the fundamental rights of voters and severely hinder the free and fair conduct of the election.However, a Bench of Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyay and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela noted that a similar petition is already pending before the Supreme Court with regard to freebies offered by political parties and hence, the High Court cannot entertain a similar plea simultaneously. "You approach the Supreme Court then, implead yourself. The same matter is pending there if freebies are legal and if freebies is corrupt practices. We will not entertain this petition at this juncture to avoid parallel proceedings," the Court told the petitioner.The Court then permitted the petitioner to withdraw the petition with the liberty to move the Supreme Court or High Court later. .The plea sought the establishment of monitoring mechanisms to ensure a free and fair election in Delhi..The plea referred to AAP's “Mukhyamantri Mahila Samman Yojana,” BJP's “Mahila Samridhi Yojna,” and Congress' “Pyari Didi Yojna,” through which the parties have promised cash benefits to voters if they come to power.It was argued that these actions violate provisions under the Representation of the People Act, 1951, specifically Section 123(1) (Corrupt Practices), Section 127A (Unauthorized Election Materials), and Section 170 & 171 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (Offences of Bribery and Undue Influence During Elections).It was also claimed that through these schemes, the parties are collecting personal and electoral data of voters without their explicit consent, in violation of their right to privacy..The petition was filed through advocates Amit Grover, Siddhartha Borgohain and Harshvardhan Sharma..[Read live coverage below]