Nagpur: Controversial advocate Satish Ukey has pleaded before the Nagpur bench of Bombay High Court to make Election Commission, Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and state home department as respondents in his petition over CM Devendra Fadnavis’s election affidavit.
Uke’s petition challenged Fadnavis’s elections under Section 100(1)(d)(i) and (iv) of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, contending that Fadnavis deliberately suppressed pendency of two criminal cases against him in the affidavit filed in 2014, thus misleading the voters. Ukey has demanded that Fadnavis’s election be held invalid in view of the missing information.
On Friday, Ukey objected to EC’s appointment of senior counsel Subodh Dharmadhikari as its lawyer. Ukey contended Dharmadhikari had represented Fadnavis in cases filed before the lower court.
Uke’s petition mentioned that two criminal offences were filed against Fadnavis on March 4, 1996, and July 9, 1998, and he did not mention the same in the election affidavit in 2014. In both the cases, Fadnavis secured bail on a personal bond of Rs3,000. The court kept the next hearing after two weeks.
Earlier, the returning officer of 52-South-West constituency from where Fadnavis won his election in 2014, informed the HC that he didn’t verify contents of the affidavit, as he wasn’t granted those powers.
